YIKES!! Chocolate frogs not really chocolate!!

[TwingleMum]

I just read that the chocolate frogs they are charging $10 for are made with PALM KERNEL OIL not cocoa butter. Thats terrible and misleading. PKO is high in saturated fat and is more stable in high heat but its disappointing that US is selling it to kids and at a high price. No wonder people complain it tastes like bad easter candy. FYI

 

[pilesoflaundry]

Yuck! Thanks for that though. While $10 is tough to swallow I was considering getting one just because it would be vacation but not for that garbage.

 

[tfoster]

That is disappointing to hear. Too bad JK Rowling didn't make sure they were using high quality chocolate. Bad "chocolate" is just nasty and certainly not worth anywhere close to $10.

 

[damo]

I read that there are about 850 calories in one of those babies!!!! Yikes!!!!

 

[Cdn Friends of Pooh]

I would suspect they used palm kernel oil is because it's good for those with nut allergies because it does not contain any of the allergen proteins which affect those who are allergic to nuts. I've also heard palm kernel oil is also cholesterol free, and is a natural source of vitamin E.


Bonny

 

[patster734]

I believe that there's a Harry Potter trading card underneath the chocolate frog. That $10 gets you more than just a chocolate frog.

 

[MrsJackSparrow4Life]

I would suspect they used palm kernel oil is because it's good for those with nut allergies because it does not contain any of the allergen proteins which affect those who are allergic to nuts.


Bonny

except the package also says this:

shares equipment with and produced in facility containing peanuts, tree nuts, milk, egg and wheat.

 

[hoverpumpkin]

I would suspect they used palm kernel oil is because it's good for those with nut allergies because it does not contain any of the allergen proteins which affect those who are allergic to nuts. I've also heard palm kernel oil is also cholesterol free, and is a natural source of vitamin E.

Bonny

Nope. THe frogs are still made in a facility that handles nuts, making them unsuitable for anybody with a nut allergy. Palm kernel oil is also extremely high in saturated fat - over 80%, as opposed to around 50% for actual cocoa butter - and harvesting it destroys huge tracts of rainforests and the animals that live there.

It's not for allergies. They did it because they are cheap. Period, full stop.

 

[scanne]

The Wizard Trading Cards are the ones where the Wizard 'pops' in and out, right? "You can't expect 'im to 'ang around all day..." - Ron Weasley.

I will not let my kids get the chocolate PKO Frogs. Nope. No way. I'm really becoming disillusioned with our Universal vacation and I now wish we were spending all 12 nights at the Polynesian. And this isn't just due to the fake choco-frogs. It's everything I've been reading since WWoHP opened.

 

[plutotek]

The Wizard Trading Cards are the ones where the Wizard 'pops' in and out, right? "You can't expect 'im to 'ang around all day..." - Ron Weasley.

I will not let my kids get the chocolate PKO Frogs. Nope. No way. I'm really becoming disillusioned with our Universal vacation and I now wish we were spending all 12 nights at the Polynesian. And this isn't just due to the fake choco-frogs. It's everything I've been reading since WWoHP opened.

I wouldn't let the vocal minority disillusion me from trying to enjoy a planned vacation. As is most frequently the case, bad experiences get more exposure than good; it's the nature of the beast, unfortunately.

 

[IzzyB]

I wouldn't let the vocal minority disillusion me from trying to enjoy a planned vacation. As is most frequently the case, bad experiences get more exposure than good; it's the nature of the beast, unfortunately.

Agreed. I have gone to WWOHP and can tell you we had an awesome time. The whole place was just really well thought out. I also bought a chocolate frog, while it is not the best chocolate I have had, it was not the worse either. I think the fun of it was the packaging and card, that is what I paid for, not really the chocolate frog. I do have to say the frog looked really cool though and I almost didn't want to eat it.

I think if you take the negative reviews and change your vacation, you are crazy. Because I have seen 10x more positive reviews than I have seen negative reviews. Some people will always find something to complain about.

 

[kmc]

yuck that's gross--I hate the way that fake easter candy tastes
I wonder if JKR tasted those like she did the butterbeer-bet not

 

[Cdn Friends of Pooh]

except the package also says this:

shares equipment with and produced in facility containing peanuts, tree nuts, milk, egg and wheat.

Nope. THe frogs are still made in a facility that handles nuts, making them unsuitable for anybody with a nut allergy. Palm kernel oil is also extremely high in saturated fat - over 80%, as opposed to around 50% for actual cocoa butter - and harvesting it destroys huge tracts of rainforests and the animals that live there.

It's not for allergies. They did it because they are cheap. Period, full stop.

Wow ... just wow ...

 

[Orlando313]

Well personally, I like cheap Easter candy.

However, $10 bucks? Not so sure. It would depend on how big it is and what the card looks. Maybe if it actually jumped. Ha!

 

[AJRitz]

Palm kernel oil is being used because it's cheap. Cocoa butter wholesale costs spiked about three or four years ago. Several candy manufacturers (including Hershey) and food conglomerates (chief among them ADM) started lobbying USDA to change the legal definition of chocolate to allow replacing cocoa butter with vegetable oils (like palm kernel oil).

Some candymakers have already started replacing cocoa butter with palm kernel oil and other vegetable oils. You'll notice if you check, for example, that a package of Baby Ruth candy bars doesn't say, "chocolate" on it anywhere. Instead the package emphasizes caramel and nougat. Even Hershey's has gotten into the act, with its Take 5 bar, Kissables, Whatchamacallit, and Mr. Goodbar.

 

[TwingleMum]

I would suspect they used palm kernel oil is because it's good for those with nut allergies because it does not contain any of the allergen proteins which affect those who are allergic to nuts. I've also heard palm kernel oil is also cholesterol free, and is a natural source of vitamin E.


Bonny

I think the package has an allergy warning it was made at a plant that processes nuts

 

[fairyprincess88]

Personally Im paying the $10 for the box. I dont care about the chocolate since Im on a "No chocolate cause you're a fat butt" diet but I want the box. I have a huge Harry Potter collection which includes all the different packaging of the candies ect. These Chocolate Frogs are exact replicas from the movies and as they are described in the books so I must have. Same with the Bertie Botts boxes. I want the box, not so much the candy. Im sure it's the same for many other fans, most dont care about the actual frog, just the collector item it comes in.

 

[TwingleMum]

I just want to say I am very excited about WWOHP. I started this thread to let people know its not chocolate. I have 3 boys who are big HP fans and love chocolate. Plus we have limited souvenir funds so I like being able to make an informed decision. I don't want to waste money. I don't want the boys eating PKO and if no one told me honestly I don't know if I would have read the ingredients. JKR is supposed to be this big health food devotee so I would not have thought she'd agree to use something like PKO. None of my boys have allergies. But rather than spend $10 on a nonchocolate frog we'll spend it somewhere else. And just because people post something doesn't mean their anti universal. Some people do not like to use products like PKO its a heads up that all.

 

[Albytaps]

I will probably end up buying one of the frogs, mostly for the card.

Anyone know of the chocolate bars they sell?

 

[hoverpumpkin]

I just want to say I am very excited about WWOHP. I started this thread to let people know its not chocolate. I have 3 boys who are big HP fans and love chocolate. Plus we have limited souvenir funds so I like being able to make an informed decision. I don't want to waste money. I don't want the boys eating PKO and if no one told me honestly I don't know if I would have read the ingredients. JKR is supposed to be this big health food devotee so I would not have thought she'd agree to use something like PKO. None of my boys have allergies. But rather than spend $10 on a nonchocolate frog we'll spend it somewhere else. And just because people post something doesn't mean their anti universal. Some people do not like to use products like PKO its a heads up that all.

Good post, TM. After I caught this in the "What did you buy" thread, I should have posted myself instead of letting it be buried in there. People should know this. We don't buy PKO, not for health reasons (although that's important), but for environmental reasons. I'm a really big HP fan too and I'm SO excited to see WWoHP in July, but I'll give the frogs a miss and buy myself a scarf instead.