FruChocs, the darlings of South Australia, trace their origins back to 1948. And while these little snackies (and associated anthropomorphic FruChoc mascot) haven’t quite captured the hearts of our other states and territories, you can’t deny that the FruChoc has staying power – it’s celebrating its 75th birthday in 2023. Fun fact: the choc-covered fruit balls were originally developed as a way to use up dried apricots and peaches from the Barossa Valley and Riverland regions.

This classic blend of chocolate, wafer and marshmallow has mastered the art of the tease. After a long reign that began in 1947, the Polly Waffle was discontinued in 2009, or so we thought. After being acquired by the Menz chocolate company (which also owns FruChocs and Violet Crumbles) in 2019, the company swore it would bring the Polly Waffle back. Covid has been blamed for the last four years of tumbleweeds, but die-hard fans are still holding out hope.

Whatever was in the water in 1931 was clearly working (you know, aside from all the lead), because not only did we get Frederick Frog, we scored the chocolate-orange cinema delight of Jaffas. Fun fact: the Australian-Kiwi treats got their name from the Jaffa orange of Palestine, and are also exceptionally loud if you ‘accidentally’ roll one down the wooden stairs of a movie theatre.

Freddo Frog hopped onto the scene in 1931, but his amphibious fate was not always set in stone. Initial designs had Fred pinned as a chocolate mouse, but 18-year-old employee, Harry ‘Man of the World’ Melbourne, decided women would be scared of chocolate mice, and thus less inclined to buy them for their kids.

Who am I? I’m chewy, I’m delicious, I’ve held a place in Australia’s heart since 1930, and I’ve been savagely and unnecessarily discontinued by the big wigs up town. That’s right! I’m the Fantale! First created in 1930, the Fantale made learning fun for generations.

Sometimes, the simplest things are truly the best. As proven by the Scorched Peanut Bar, which burst onto the scene in 1928. It may have endured a 40-year hiatus, but you can’t keep a good thing down and, in 2019, the SPB came back. Even the signature pared-back design has hardly changed, nearly a century later. It’s crisp, it’s crunchy, and if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Originally created by the MacRobertson Steam Confectionery Works (catchy) in 1924, the Cherry Ripe has remained almost exactly the same since Day One, with the exception of the ‘MacRobertson’ label, which changed to ‘Cadbury’ with the confection giant’s purchase of the company back in 1967.

Given how long Minties have been around in Australia, it probably won’t surprise you to learn that ‘It’s moments like these you need Minties’ is the longest-running advertising slogan in Australian history. What may come as news, however, is that Minties’ original Sydney factory was a sort of haven for more than 1,000 female workers in 1922, complete with a large canteen and social hall, sports and cricket grounds, a library, band and sports clubs.

The Violet Crumble is the OG of the spin-off series, having made its debut as a piece of honeycomb in a mixed box, where it stole the show. The original box, released in 1913 by South Melbourne’s Hoadley’s Chocolates, was purple and decorated with violets as a tribute to Mrs Hoadley’s favourite colour and flower. The rest, as they say, is history.