Cadbury's multicoloured 'Unity Bar' fails to 'solve racism', leaves chocolate fans divided

Global confectionery giant Cadbury has long been seen as a master of the chocolate trade - and let's face it, chocolate is usually pretty hard to get wrong.

However, Cadbury's latest offering - four different varieties of chocolate in one big slab labelled the "Unity Bar" - has left a bad taste in some people's mouths. 

Cadbury posted on Twitter to commemorate India's Independence Day by promoting its new product.

"This Independence Day, let's celebrate a country that stands united in its diversity. Presenting the Cadbury Unity Bar, India's first chocolate with dark, blended, milk and white chocolate all under one wrap," the company wrote.

"Made to celebrate India and her people, because sweet things happen when we unite," said the product's promotional clip.

A handful of commentators have responded to the tweet, criticising the British company for its seemingly distasteful take on racial divisions.

"Congratulations to Cadbury for solving racism," said New York Times restaurant critic Tejal Rao.

Satirical comedian Ziwe Fumudoh went for a slightly different flavour with her comeback, likening Cadbury's celebration of unity to Martin Luther King Jr's iconic 'I Have a Dream' speech.

"I have a dream that my children will not be judged by the colour of their chocolate, but by the content of their creamy filling," she joked.

"Pay them a steep price for a different coloured bar of chocolate and feel good about yourself. Cadbury makes more money, you feel virtuous. Good strategy," ET Now editor Chandra R. Srikanth blasted the brand.

The campaign, produced by the agency Ogilvy, kicked off around two weeks ago - but only attracted attention last week due to the marketing misstep. 

The incident has been likened by some to Pepsi's controversial campaign featuring Kendall Jenner in 2017. The commercial came under fire for mishandling race relations, seemingly appropriating the Black Lives Matter protest movement to market the fizzy drink.

Newshub.