Ritter Sport

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Knight Sport Logo

Ritter Sport is a chocolate brand from Alfred Ritter GmbH & Co. KG .

history

Ritter Sport Minis (2006)
Ritter Sport Factory in Waldenbuch
Buddy Bear "Trops" in the flagship store , Französische Straße 24, in Berlin-Mitte

The first chocolate brand of the chocolate and sugar confectionery factory founded by Clara and Alfred E. Ritter in Cannstatt in 1912 was AlRiKa Krem-Schokolade ( acronym : Alfred Ritter Kannstatt).

According to the manufacturer, Ritter's Sport Schokolade was introduced as a brand in 1932 . Clara Ritter (née Göttle) had the idea of ​​developing a sports chocolate. The aim was to produce a chocolate bar that, despite the weight of a normal long bar, should fit in any sports jacket pocket . The chocolate square was first called Sport-Schokolade and later, in 1970, Ritter Sport Schokolade .

From 1970, the company sold more on advertising , particularly in the TV to the level of awareness to increase the brand. During this time the slogan “Square. Practically. Well".

In the years that followed, innovations were created that became essential components of the brand: In 1974, for example, Ritter Sport introduced the colorful palette, whereby each variety could be differentiated by color. In addition, tubular bag packaging and the kink opening were introduced in 1976 . In 1982 the Ritter Sport Minis came onto the market. In 1999 the range was expanded with the Ritter Sport Diet Chocolate and the small Ritter Sport 40 g . There is also Ritter Sport Rum and Ritter Sport chocolate cubes . Since September 2006, a large 250-gram bar of selected varieties has been available. The most common bar is still the 100 gram bar. During the 1990s, in addition to the products mentioned, there was also the Ritter Sport Balloon chocolate bar in different flavors. In 1998 the market share for 100 g chocolate bars was 22 percent.

For the Christmas and Easter sales periods there are seasonal products such as Advent calendars or Christmas packaging.

Ritter Sport is sold in 90 countries. B. by the confectionery manufacturer Loacker .

Since 2010 the company has also tried mass customization and has opened a flagship store in Berlin where it is possible to create an individual Ritter Sport board. In addition, it invested a seven-figure sum in the Berlin company Chocri , which offers customizable chocolates ( bars , pralines, figurines) on the Internet; In 2014 Ritter Sport sold its shares to Hans Riegelein & Sohn GmbH & Co. KG from Cadolzburg.

The chocolate manufacturer has set up its own cocoa plantation in Nicaragua. Ritter Sport describes the facility as the “largest contiguous cocoa plantation in the world”.

Although the company since 1990 and ecologically economize cooperatives cocoa -producing farmers in Nicaragua supported, no has been fair-trade label applied.

brand

The slogan “Square. Practically. Gut. ”Is intended to highlight the special features of the brand, in particular the square shape of the chocolate bars and their practical size. Abroad, the three terms are usually translated one-to-one into the national language, for example “Carré. Pratique. Gourmand. ”In France. In the English-speaking countries, instead, the saying “Quality in a Square.” In Great Britain or “Quality. Chocolate. Squared. ”In Canada and the United States.

The packaging has a high recognition value , as only a few chocolate brands are offered in square bars (in addition to Ritter Sport, for example, the ROMY coconut chocolate and the Mr. Tom Chocolate peanut chocolate from Hosta ).

The company logo has remained unchanged since the 1980s. It consists of a curved knight lettering and underneath Sport in large block letters, together surrounded by a square. As a rule, the font color is blue, the square background is white and the square frame is golden, with the premium boards the background was black and the font was also golden.

The Knick-Pack kink opening, which is protected by trademark law, allows the chocolate square to be opened with just one kink. The pack can be closed again with the resulting flap. In the past, this property was also mentioned in advertising: "Ritter Sport - the trick with the kink and the stitch with the pocket".

sorts

The varieties of Rittersport chocolate in square packaging currently consist of 20 standard varieties ( colorful variety ), seven nut varieties ( nut class ), three single-origin varieties ( cocoa class ) and other special varieties. The packaging of each variety has its own color, e.g. yellow for Ritter Sport crispy flakes or white for Ritter Sport yoghurt.

In mid-2009, the company published a ranking of the five most popular and best-selling standard varieties at the time. First place went to the “whole nut” variety, followed by “nougat”, “marzipan”, “rum grape nut” and “alpine milk”.

In the mini version of the chocolate bars (around 17 grams per bar) there are either seven varieties ( Bunter Mix ) or four varieties ( Mix of the Year ) in different numbers in a multipack.

The larger chocolate bars are available as 250-gram bars in addition to the standard types of alpine milk, nougat, white + crisp, crispy flakes, nut splinters and yoghurt, exclusively in the variants Goldschatz (40% cocoa, since 2008) and cranberry nut (since 2018). Production of the "Ritter Sport Premium" line (125 gram bars with a higher cocoa content), which had been introduced in the meantime, was discontinued in 2007.

There are also lactose-free varieties (whole milk and whole nuts, since 2012) and varieties with ingredients from organic farming. The 65-gram bars of caramel chips (since 2016), macadamia (since 2009), almond chips, grape cashews and whole milk 35% (all since 2008) bear the organic seal . In 2016, the two vegan varieties Dark Whole Nut Amaranth and Dark Almond Quinoa were introduced, and in 2019 another vegan variety, sesame, was added.

In addition to chocolate bars, other products are also offered under the “Ritter Sport” brand. The Ritter Sport Rum chocolate bar has been around since 1974, and individually wrapped chocolate pieces in a cardboard box as "chocolate cubes" or "quadretties" since 2012.

List of 100 gram bars
designation Packaging color Launch
Alpine milk (30%) Light Blue 1984
Premium whole milk (35%) medium blue 2010
Strawberry yogurt pink 2007
Oat biscuit + yogurt green Blue 2019
Semi-sweet (50%) purple 1950
yogurt White 1971
Coffee chips dark brown 2018
Cocoa mousse light brown 2012
Crispy flakes yellow 1992
Crispy biscuit chocolate brown 1998
coconut sky blue 1979/2013
Almond orange blue green 2019
marzipan red 1935
nougat dark blue 1935
Nut splinters green 2016
peppermint turquoise 1983
Rum grape nut dark red 1964
grape nut medium brown 1935
waffle Orange red 2018
White + crisp beige 2011
Cashew dark brown / light green (nut grade) 2020
Dark whole nut purple (nut grade) 2002
Whole almond dark green (nut grade) 1983
Honey-salt-almond orange (nut grade) 2015
Macadamia blue (nut grade) 2016
Whole nut dark brown (nut grade) 1968
White whole nut yellow (nut grade) 1990
55% The mildness from Ghana light blue / pink (cocoa class) 2019
61% The fine ones from Nicaragua yellow / green (cocoa class) 2019
74% The strong one from Peru orange / dark blue (cocoa class) 2019

Discontinued varieties and special editions

designation Edition year 
Whole milk Standard (medium blue) 1932–2010, replaced by premium whole milk
Marzipan peppermint Standard (green) 1963–1983, replaced by peppermint
Ovaltine default 1968-1988
Kids sport default 1973–1985
Olympia (honey-nut yogurt) Standard (golden), summer 1996 variety 1980ff, 1996, 2010-2017
Multi-fruit default 1986-1987
Butter truffle and orange liqueur Mother's Day 1988
Yogurt Lemon Summer variety 1995-2000
Yogurt orange Summer variety 1995-1999
Peanut cream Summer variety 1996
Yoghurt peach passion fruit Summer variety 1997-1999
Diet whole milk Diabetic variety 1999-2012
Semi-sweet diet Diabetic variety 1999-2012
Diet nougat Diabetic variety 1999-2012
Diet yogurt Diabetic variety 1999-2012
Choc 2000 (nut nougat cocoa chips) Special edition 2000
Mocha cream Standard (brown) previously also as cream + mocha (orange)
Yogurt black currant Summer variety 2000-2003
Yogurt-Strawberry-Rhubarb Summer variety 2000-2003
Slopes Crisp Limited winter edition 2001
Peanut + flakes Active 2001
Caramel + nut Active 2001
Milk + cereals Active 2001
Whole milk smarties Special edition 2001-2003
White chocolate smarties Special edition 2001-2003
Yoghurt red groats Summer variety 2002-2003
Amaretto truffle Winter variety 2002-2005
Cointreau truffles Winter variety 2002-2003
Bailey's truffles Winter variety 2002-2004
cappuccino Standard (orange-brown) 2003, discontinued
Guarana crunch Active 2003
Granola crunch Active 2003
Nut crunch Active 2003
Tiramisu Countries (Italy) 2004
Amarena cherry Countries (Italy) 2004
Stracciatella Countries (Italy) 2004
Amarettini Countries (Italy) 2004-2005
Creme caramel Countries (France) 2004-2005
Maple Walnut Countries (Canada) 2004-2005
Cocoa cream Standard (beige-brown) 2004, discontinued
Raspberry Lemon Yogurt Summer variety 2004
Sour cherry and vanilla yogurt Summer variety 2004
Strawberry yogurt Summer variety 2004 (later standard)
Crunchy Pops Quadrago 2005
Whole milk + pop shower Quadrago 2005
Milk + cocoa Quadrago 2005
Fine dry à la Mousse au Chocolat Standard (dark brown) 2005, discontinued
Whiskey truffle Winter variety 2004-2005
Truffle Irish Coffee Winter variety 2005
Truffle Vanilla Liqueur Winter variety 2005-2006
Blood orange / blood orange yogurt (white) Summer variety 2005-2008
Full of peanut Standard (orange) 2006, discontinued
Strawberry rhubarb (white) Summer variety 2006
Lemon (white) Summer variety 2006
Espresso crunch World Cup 2006 fan edition 2006
Golden peanut World Cup 2006 fan edition 2006
Sunny Crisp World Cup 2006 fan edition 2006
Jamaica Rum Truffle Winter variety 2006-2009
Batida de Coco truffle Spring variety 2007
Marc de Champagne truffle Spring variety 2007-2008
Strawberry yogurt (white) Summer variety 2007
Dark whole milk (40% cocoa) Variety of the year (light green) 2007
Red wine truffle Winter variety 2007
Williams pear truffle Winter variety 2007-2008
Neapolitan waffle Variety of the year (dark orange) 2008
Off-dry 60% Organic variety, 65 g 2008
Ramazzotti Spring variety 2008-2009
Advocaat Spring / winter variety 2008-2009
Orange liqueur truffle Winter variety 2008
Caramel nut Variety of the year (orange) 2009
Ritter Sport Friends (Macadamia + Cashew + Almond) Special edition 2009
Chocolate duo Standard (medium blue / dark brown) 2009, discontinued
Apricot brandy Spring variety 2009
Peach and passion fruit yogurt Summer variety / summer pleasure 2009-2011
Wild berry yogurt Summer variety / summer pleasure from 2009 on
Spekulatius Winter variety 2009, 2017, 2018, 2019
Milk cream almond Variety of the year (light blue) 2010
Cocoa chips nut Organic variety, 65 g 2010-2016
espresso Standard (coffee brown) 2010-2017
chocolate cream Standard (dark brown), only 250 g 2010, discontinued
Cashew in alpine milk Spring specialty 2010
Hazelnut brittle Spring specialty 2010–2012
Bourbon vanilla Spring specialty 2010–2012
Nut in nougat cream Winter creation 2010
Orange marzipan Winter creation 2010-2011
Vanilla crescents Winter creation 2010–2011, 2014
Stracciatella Summer enjoyment 2010-2011
Wild berry yogurt Summer enjoyment 2010, 2012
Milk + crispy wheat Standard (light yellow), only 250 g 2011-2013
Noisette Standard (light green) 2011-2013
Alpine cream praline Spring specialty 2011
Amarena cherry Summer enjoyment 2011–2012
Sugared almonds Winter creation 2011-2019
Dark nougat cream Winter creation 2012
Fine nut mix Anniversary variety 100 years of knights 2012
Cocoa chips Spring specialty 2012-2013
Coconut macaroon Winter creation 2012–2013, 2016
White coconut Summer enjoyment 2012-2013
à la Crema Catalana Spring creation 2013-2014
Caramel orange Winter creation 2013
Caramel + biscuit Standard (orange brown), only 250g 2013-2018
Fine bitter (73%) Standard (dark purple) 2013-2018
Cookies & Cream Spring creation from 2013
Strawberry Vanilla Waffle Summer enjoyment 2013-2014
Raspberry-Cranberry Yogurt Summer enjoyment 2013-2014
Meringue nut Spring creation 2014
Ice cream parlor Summer enjoyment 2014-2015
Coffee + nut Winter creation 2014
Vanilla mousse Variety of the year (beige) 2014-2016
Honey-salt-almond Variety of the year (orange-red) 2015 (currently standard)
Hazelnut cookies Spring specialty 2015
Raspberry vanilla Spring specialty 2015-2016
Buttermilk Lemon Summer pleasure, 2019 as a spring specialty 2015–2016, 2018–2019
Strawberry mint Summer enjoyment 2015
Vanilla Chai Latte Winter creation 2015
Nusskipferl Winter creation 2015
Crispy tortilla chips Standard (orange red) 2016-2017
Biscuit + nut Standard (beige) 2016-2019
Caramel mousse Standard (caramel brown) 2016-2020
Oats and banana Äffle and Pferdle special edition 50,000 pieces 2016
Unicorn: white chocolate-raspberry-cassis Special edition 50,000 + 150,000 pieces 2016
White yogurt mousse Spring specialty 2016-2017
Blackberry yogurt Summer enjoyment 2016-2017
White cinnamon crisp Winter creation 2016-2017
gingerbread Christmas edition, only mini 2016-2018
Cardamom-cinnamon-almond Christmas edition, only mini 2016
hazelnut Christmas edition, only mini 2017
Chocolate brownie Variety of the year, then standard (chocolate brown) 2017-2020
White almond Nut class (light green) 2017-2020
Currant sprinkles Spring specialty 2017-2019
Honey & crisp Spring specialty 2017-2018
First class chocolate: white chocolate with hazelnut and strawberry pieces Special edition for the promotion of VfB Stuttgart to the 1st Bundesliga 2017
Circus HalliGalli - whole milk riot with flakes Support of the Red Nose Day in cooperation with Circus HalliGalli 2017
Circus HalliGalli - yoghurt smack with crunch Support of the Red Nose Day in cooperation with Circus HalliGalli 2017
almond Quadretti (dark green), only 5g 2017
Pink grapefruit Summer enjoyment 2017
Iced cocoa cream Summer enjoyment 2017-2018
Coffee chips Variety of the year (coffee brown) 2018 (currently standard)
Lemon waffle Spring specialty / summer variety 2018-2019
Heavenly berry (raspberry yogurt crisp) Summer fan creation 2018
Chocolate & Grass (hemp seeds in a milk frenzy) Special edition 100,000 pieces 2018
Nut + crisp Winter creation 2018
Christmas mini (cocoa cream and almond spices) Christmas edition, only mini 2018
First harvest Special edition 30,000 pieces, milk chocolate (54%) from our own harvest 2018
Oat biscuit + yogurt Spring specialty 2019 (currently standard)
raspberry yoghurt Summer variety 2019
Strawberrymousse Summer variety 2019
Dark mint crisp Winter creation 2019
Christmas table (with Christmas spices) Special edition, 145g 2019
Marhaba (yogurt honey nut) Wanderlust Edition (Morocco, yellow) 2020
Hula Hula (coconut waffle) Wanderlust Edition (Hawaii, green) 2020
Buenos Días (White Mango Passion Fruit) Wanderlust Edition (Costa Rica, orange) 2020

ingredients

Since 2003 it has been allowed in all member states of the European Union to replace up to 5% of the cocoa butter in chocolate production with certain other vegetable fats, for example palm oil. This brings the chocolate manufacturers cost advantages, since cocoa butter is expensive.

In the EU, such a replacement must be marked on the packaging; Ritter Sport says it does not use vegetable fats as an ingredient in the chocolate mass. However, palm oil is used for the fillings in varieties with a filling, as it is creamy to firm in consistency at room temperature.

Penalties and Trials

Antitrust penalty

On January 31, 2013 it became known that the Federal Cartel Office imposed a fine of 7.5 million euros on Ritter Sport for unauthorized price fixing with other confectionery manufacturers. The company denied the allegations.

Unjustified devaluation by Stiftung Warentest

The “Whole Nut” variety was rated “poor” by Stiftung Warentest at the end of November 2013 . The downgrading was based on the assumption of the testers that the flavoring substance piperonal detected in the chocolate could not be obtained "naturally" in the required quantities. Since only natural flavors are listed in the list of ingredients, the testers concluded that the manufacturer had made false statements. Ritter Sport refers, in contrast to a statutory warranty of flavors supplier Symrise , after which it is but natural flavoring IN QUESTION, as it "only natural origin" and "full of traffic- as well as enjoyable capable is". In November 2013, Ritter Sport obtained an injunction prohibiting the foundation from claiming that Ritter Sport used chemically produced flavors in its nut chocolate. In January 2014, the district court Munich I confirmed the decision after an objection by Stiftung Warentest. This was followed by an appeal before the Munich Higher Regional Court . In this, the classification of the production method as natural or synthetic was not the subject of the negotiation, but the question of whether an overall test judgment is “unsatisfactory”, which is only based on an indirect conclusion about the extraction method of one of the ingredients, in view of the considerable influence of such evaluations Stiftung Warentest on purchase decisions by average consumers is still an objectively justified criticism of the tested product. The OLG decided this question on September 9, 2014 against the Stiftung Warentest; Revision, however, was not allowed, so the decision is final. However, there was still the possibility of opening a main proceedings to clarify exactly how the aroma is produced.

At the end of September 2014, Stiftung Warentest finally announced that it would recognize the judgment and not want to continue the legal dispute. In November 2014, Ritter Sport announced that it would waive a claim for damages against Stiftung Warentest.

Dispute over the square shape

For years, a legal dispute between Ritter and the American manufacturer Mondelēz International over the brandability of the square packaging form had dragged on. After Mondelēz with its chocolate brand Milka had initially prevailed before the Federal Patent Court with the argument that the trademark law forbids the protection of forms that are already determined by the type of goods themselves, Mondelēz International was defeated with this argument in October 2017 in the last instance before Federal Court of Justice .

The Federal Court of Justice ruled that Ritter Sport could temporarily keep the trademark protection for the square chocolate format and referred the case back to the Federal Patent Court in Munich for further clarification (Az. I ZB 105/16 and others).

After the Federal Patent Court had also dismissed Mondelēz International's suit, Mondelēz International filed a new suit, based on the reason for exclusion not examined in the previous suit, according to which a shape trademark may not be granted if the shape gives the goods significant value. After the Federal Patent Court had ruled in favor of Ritter, Mondelēz International took action before the Federal Court of Justice. On July 23, 2020, the procedure was decided in favor of Ritter Sport.

Web links

Commons : Ritter Sport  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. Jürgen Hagel: Cannstatt und seine Geschichte , Verlag Silberburg, 2002, ISBN 978-3874075299 , p. 126.
  2. RITTER SPORT - Our story. In: Website of Alfred Ritter GmbH & Co. KG. Retrieved August 20, 2019 .
  3. ^ TV show NDR Marken-Check from July 8, 2013.
  4. Ritter Sport joins online sales company Chocri. In: Der Tagesspiegel. 17th September 2010.
  5. Schokopoker decided: Chocri wins Ritter as a partner. ( Memento from November 19, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) In: Gründerraum. September 16, 2010.
  6. Ritter Sport leaves Chocri - Riegelein takes over. In: Berliner Morgenpost. October 22, 2014.
  7. Thomas Thieme: Where the cocoa for Ritter Sport comes from. In: stuttgarter-Zeitung.de , accessed on March 15, 2018.
  8. .de deutschland-magazin especial (Ed. Frankfurter Societäts-Medien GmbH) 2011, p. 15.
  9. Greenpeace Magazin, Interview with Alfred T. Ritter greenpeace-magazin.de ( Memento from December 18, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  10. Brand slogans
  11. The new RITTER SPORT range. In: Ritter Sport Blog , March 7, 2016
  12. Alfred Ritter GmbH & Co. KG: The top five of the colorful squares - the most popular Ritter Sport varieties. Website of Alfred Ritter GmbH & Co. KG. July 2009.
  13. Chocolate & Grass. In: ritter-sport.de
  14. ^ Alfred Ritter GmbH & Co. KG: Reinheitsgebot website of Alfred Ritter GmbH & Co. KG. December 2019.
  15. Palm fat - Answers to the most important questions. In: Ritter Sport Blog. Alfred Ritter GmbH & Co. KG , February 4, 2020, accessed on February 25, 2020 .
  16. Federal Cartel Office imposes fines on confectionery manufacturers of over 60 million euros. ( Memento from August 26, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) In: bundeskartellamt.de , accessed on August 22, 2014
  17. Ritter defends himself against cartel punishment - chocolate manufacturers have to pay. In: n-tv.de. January 31, 2013, accessed August 22, 2014 .
  18. Chocolate: The dispute with Ritter Sport. Stiftung Warentest, December 2, 2013, accessed on January 14, 2014 .
  19. Ritter Sport supplier defends himself against allegations. In: Spiegel Online. November 22, 2014, accessed January 14, 2014 .
  20. Judgment by Stiftung Warentest: Ritter Sport appalled by the "poor" rating. In: spiegel.de. November 21, 2013. Retrieved November 22, 2013 .
  21. "Poor" assessment: Ritter Sport obtains an injunction against product testing. In: Spiegel.de. Retrieved January 13, 2014 .
  22. Chocolate dispute: Ritter Sport wins against Stiftung Warentest. In: Spiegel.de. Retrieved January 13, 2014 .
  23. Stiftung Warentest loses against Ritter Sport. In: faz.net . September 9, 2014, accessed September 9, 2014 .
  24. ^ Allegations against Ritter Sport: Stiftung Warentest loses second round in the chocolate dispute. In: Spiegel Online . September 9, 2014, accessed September 9, 2014 .
  25. Legal dispute over "Ritter Sport Voll-Nuss" ended: Stiftung Warentest recognizes judgment of the Munich Higher Regional Court. In: test.de. Retrieved October 19, 2017 .
  26. No claim for damages against Stiftung Warentest. In: tagesspiegel.de. November 16, 2014, accessed November 17, 2014 .
  27. Michael Gassmann: Trademark law: Why Milka is so keen on Ritter Sports Square . In: THE WORLD . May 14, 2020 ( welt.de [accessed May 15, 2020]).
  28. Ritter Sport retains trademark protection for the square format. In: faz.net .
  29. Ritter Sport and Dextro Energy - partial success in the dispute over trademark law. In: stuttgarter-zeitung.de. Retrieved October 19, 2017 .
  30. Lisa Kutteruf: Litigation between Ritter Sport and Milka - only one can be square. In: stuttgarter-zeitung.de. Retrieved July 24, 2020 .