Ferrero to bring Tic Tac gum and Kinder Joy eggs to US in 2018

It marks the first time the Kinder brand will be sold in the US, and comes after a long-standing ban on toy-filled confections in the country.

Different from US-banned Kinder Surprise ​

Ferrero representative Iya Bleyman said: “The reason why we’re bringing the Kinder Joy to the US is because Ferrero has been growing, and most of its brands, such as Ferrero Rocher and Nutella, are doing very well. Now it’s our time to bring our next ‘craze’ to the market.”​

The launch in January next year coicides with Kinder's 50^th​ anniversary.

Kinder Joy eggs, each of which consists of two halves that are individually sealed and fused together, contain a layer of cocoa cream, milk cream and two crunchy wafer balls inside, and a surprise toy on the other side.

The chocolate item will be sold across all channels in the US for under $2 each, according to the company.

Kinder Surprise eggs - a hollow egg of chocolate with a capsule inside containing a toy - have been prohibited from sale in the US.

The 1938 Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act outlawed, "non-nutritive items"​ inside confections, preventing products like Ferrero’s Kinder Surprise enetring the market. However, Candy Treasure, Yowie and the Whestone Chocolate factory overcame the ban in 2013 with specially-designed, child-safe capsules.

Tic Tac gum maintains mint shell​

Ferrero is also planning to bring Tic Tac’s first gum products to the US around the same time next year.

Tic Tac gum fresh mint won the Most Innovative Product Award​​ in the gum and mint category this year at the Expo.

The new product line, which contains 56 pieces per pack, comes in three flavors, including fresh mint, spearmint and cool watermelon. A pack will retail for $1.39 across all US channels.

Ferrero representative Georgina Turpin said even though this is Tic Tac’s first time to launch gum products, they maintain the brand’s traditional mint shell since they are covered with a crunchy shell.

“The gum category in the US has been stagnant, but we’re leveraging Tic Tac’s huge fan base in the US and introducing a new format, and we believe it will drive interest and sales,”​ she said.     

Ferrero will also open its first own-store, the Nutella Café, in Chicago by the end of May 2017.  

The Italian company recently acquired Chicago-native chocolate brand Fannie May Confections​​ to expand its footprint in US premium chocolate and e-commerce chocolate.

The firm said the transaction will be complete in the next few weeks.