Toblerone removes mountain on packaging after Swissness Act concerns

Toblerone chocolate bar packaging will no longer have the same image representing the iconic Matterhorn mountain top located in the Alps between Switzerland and Italy. 

The chocolate brand's parent company Mondelez International confirmed to the Swiss outlet Aargauer Zeitung that the packaging will have the image replaced with a more geometric "streamlined mountain logo" that will align with the package shape's triangular aesthetic. 

The effort, though, is also being characterized as the company not wanting to violate Switzerland's "Swissness Act," enacted in 2017.

The legislation says it is an effort to "curb" the "misuse" of products from Switzerland, as they are "also being used more frequently by free riders."

The Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property said "The new 'Swissness' legislation therefore strengthens protection for the 'Made in Switzerland' designation and the Swiss cross. It helps prevent and curb their misuse, so that the value of the 'Swiss' brand can be preserved in the long term."

Mondelez announced last year that it would outsource some of its production to Bratislava to cut costs, Semafor reported. 

The Toblerone factory in Bern, Switzerland would remain open, but it wasn't immediately certain what effect the changes in production would have.