The first chocolate Easter egg in the UK was introduced in 1873 by the family-owned company, Fry’s. The founder, Joseph Fry, started out selling drinking chocolate in the 1750s, and his grandsons created the first chocolate bars in the 1860s. Fry’s particular achievement at this time was their chocolate Cream Bar, a product that is still sold today. In England, the most popular way of decorating was with petals, which made colorful imprints. The Wordsworth Museum in the Lake District still has a collection of eggs made for the poet's children from the 1870s. They also designed colourful adverts for their products in posters and postcards, some of which are on display in the Victorian sweet shop at Preston Park Museum. Chocolate eggs are said to have originated in France and Germany in the early 19th century but here in the UK it was J. S. Fry & Sons Limited who produced the first chocolate egg in 1873. Even in the early 20th century, these chocolate eggs were seen as a special present and many people never even ate theirs. A woman in Wales kept an egg from 1951 for 70 years and a museum in Torquay recently bought an egg that had been saved since 1924.

Generations of Bristol families produced Fry’s and Cadbury’s chocolate treats - like Chocolate Cream, Turkish Delight, Curly Wurly, Crunchie - at the Keynsham building until it closed its doors in 2011. Bought out by Kraft Foods, who had originally agreed to keep the factory open, chocolate production was transferred to Poland, putting more than 500 local people out of work. While it is true that Quakers in the UK, like the Fry and Cadbury families, helped lead the anti-slavery movement, it is also correct to say that not every Quaker held this view, particularly in America.

Fry's Collection Chocolate Selection Box 249g (Box of 8)

Breast milk is the best ‘whey’ – academic explains breastfeeding benefits and why mothers shouldn’t be embarrassed In 1847, the Fry's chocolate factory on Union Street, Bristol, moulded a chocolate bar suitable for large-scale production. [1] [3] The firm began producing the Fry's Chocolate Cream bar in 1866. [1] Although it was not unheard of cacao being consumed in solid form, [9] Fry's is considered the first chocolate bar suitable for widespread consumption. [2] [3] [10] Over 220 products were introduced in the following decades, including the UK's first chocolate Easter egg in 1873 and Fry's Turkish Delight (or "Fry's Turkish bar") in 1914. [11] In 1896, the firm became a registered private company, run by the Fry family, with Joseph Storrs Fry II, grandson of the first Joseph Storrs Fry, as the chairman. [12] Although dyeing patterned eggs is still a common Easter activity, these days eggs are more commonly associated with chocolate. But when did this shift happen? There are many who attribute this Easter custom with the early Christians of Mesopotamia, from whence it spread to Eastern Europe and Siberia, before later coming to other parts of Europe via the Catholic and Protestant churches .

Today chocolate is thought of as a solid food, but then it was only ever a drink and was usually spiced with chilli pepper following Aztec and Maya traditions. For the English, this exotic new drink was like nothing they'd ever encountered. One author called it the "American Nectar": a drink for the gods. William Gervase Clarence-Smith (2003). Cocoa and Chocolate, 1765-1914. Routledge. p.58. ISBN 0-203-46186-X. Chocolate was soon a fashionable drink for the aristocracy, often given as a gift thanks to its high status, a tradition still followed today. It was also enjoyed in the newly opened coffee houses around London. Coffee and tea had also only just been introduced to England and all three drinks were rapidly changing how Britons socially interacted with each other. These days Easter eggs come in all shapes and sizes, but where did the first chocolate egg come from and where did this tradition begin?

The Fry’s eggs were so successful that rivals Cadbury copied the idea two years later, paving the way for countless more imitations and an enduring global tradition. It was no accident that Fry’s were the innovators in the field; they had, after all, already been delighting customers with their chocolate treats for more than a century. Despite this, Fry’s products including their Cream Bar and Turkish Delight Bar are still sold today under the Cadbury name. Even Easter eggs bearing the Fry’s name are still being sold for the occasion, carrying on a tradition that has lasted 147 years. a b c d e Mintz, Sidney (2015). The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets. Oxford University Press. p.157. Fry, alongside Cadbury and Rowntree's, was one of the big three British confectionery manufacturers throughout much of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and all three companies were founded by Quakers. [4] [5] The company became a division of Cadbury in the early twentieth century. The division's Somerdale Factory near Bristol was closed after the 2010 takeover of Cadbury's by Kraft Foods Inc. [6] [7] History [ edit ] Fry and Sons Manufactory, Nelson Street, Bristol, 1882 Modern slavery is still a problem in cocoa production and important steps are being taken by manufacturers to help eradicate it from the chocolate industry once and for all.

Around the world, the likes of France and Germany had been making chocolate eggs for many years before the UK, but these eggs had been made from solid chocolate. Fry’s had been the first to figure out how to use moulds and make hollow eggs. This had been achieved through the Fry family’s innovations in making chocolate by mixing cocoa fat with cocoa powder and sugar. This made a smooth paste which could be poured into egg moulds.

Fry's Turkish Delight Bar 51g (Box of 48)

Despite the closure of the Frys/Cadbury factory at Keynsham just over 20 years ago, our region is today home to many, many independent chocolate makers - using creative talent and ethical practices including fairly traded chocolate. The commitment from chocolate companies to learn from the past actions, both good and bad, of their predecessors is important. It was founded by Joseph Fry in 1728. He invested in Walter Churchman, who patented a new and higly effective way to grind cocoa beans. After Joseph died his wife Anna took over, until their son Joseph Storrs Fry took charge. He invented a successful cocoa bean roaster but later neglected the business.