Since 1974, Kinder Surprise is a mix of chocolate and curiosity. This famous egg was created by Ferrero and has conquered generations with the original combination: sweet on the outside and a toy on the inside. The idea was pushed by Michele Ferrero, son of Pietro Ferrero, and it transformed an Easter tradition into a whole year one. But there’s one country that cannot be part of the surprise egg tradition anymore: in the United States, the one and only Kinder Surprise is forbidden.
The brand found a solution not to ban the U.S. completely, and that’s how the KinderJoy started; an egg that follows carefully the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) norms. Meanwhile, this has become a huge cultural phenomenon with collectors, border stories with Canada, and records like that of Hoorman Pour in Guinness World Records confirm that this small egg has left a huge mark.
An icon with a surprise
The chocolate egg holds a yellow capsule inside with a toy hidden on it; it can be a tiny car, a Smurf, or plenty of other things. Behind it, there’s a whole team of I+D designing about 300 new figurines each year, which is actually what keeps expectations high every time you open one.
The fever to collect the toys didn’t start long after. In 2021, the Australian Hoorman Pour registered the Guinness World Record for having the biggest collection ever known, with around 1,500 pieces. That global enthusiasm can very well explain the Kinder Surprise’s charm.
It al started with Michele Ferrero, who was inspired by the Italian custom of hiding little surprises on the Easter eggs. He wanted to take that excitement to the everyday life, and he did! The product went far across lenguajes, countries, cultures and generations.
Why is it banned in the United States?
The FDA forbids selling Kinder Surprise because it considers that putting “Non-nutritious objects” inside food involves a risk of suffocation. The rule is very strict, in fact, it is applied even at the borders. There are already stories about confiscated eggs from travelers who were trying to smuggle them from Canada.
En 2011, Lind Bird talked about her own experience: border agents took only one egg, and warned her about a possible $300 fine. She told BBC “It’s just a chocolate egg, and they were making a big deal.” Then added, “TheyThey said ‘if you were caught with this across the border you would get charged a $300 fine.’ It’s ridiculous. It’s so ridiculous.”
She later received a 7 letter pages to authorize its destruction, with the option of keeping it for $250 if she wanted a challenge. “I thought it was a joke… I had to read it twice.”
The norm can seem too much but it coherent with the sanitary policy of the country: no food should contain non edible pieces inside.
The approved altenative: Kinder Joy
To comply with the regulations, Ferrero launched Kinder Joy in 2017 in the U.S. Keeping the egg’s shape, but with a different design, this time, divided in two compartments: one side has the toy, and the other side has a creamy chocolate dessert and that you can eat with a little spoon. This way, the product responded to the FDA demands.
The experience is not the same, you don’t break it to get the mysterious yellow capsule, but the essence is the same, a nice chocolate moment and a surprise. Kinder Joy allowed the brand to connect again with the American public without losing the legacy that Kinder Surprise started.
Half a century later, Kinder Surprise (or Joy) is still a symbol of everyday creativity. The history of Italian tradition, toy design, modern adaptation.