[category]
[title]
Rainbow sprinkles – or 100s-and-1000s, as many Aussies call them – are having a major moment in bakeries across the country right now. From dot cakes and fairy bread shokupan loaves to freckle croissants and funfetti pizzas, they’re being sprinkled onto every dessert imaginable. But before you get distracted by the latest viral baking trend, let's pay respect to Australia's OG rainbow-speckled sweet treat: the Haigh’s Chocolate Speckle. As it turns out, this icon is officially Haigh's best-selling chocolate of all time.
Dating back to 1915, Haigh’s is Australia’s oldest family-owned chocolatier, with soon-to-be 26 retail stores across Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra and Brisbane. Now in the hands of the fourth generation, this Willy Wonka wonderland pumps out an extraordinary 1,100 tonnes of liquid gold per year across its multiple factories.
That classic “kid in a candy store” sentiment perfectly describes the feeling of stepping into a Haigh’s chocolate shop, where you’re overwhelmed with more than 250 different treats. So, what are you reaching for first?
Milk Chocolate Speckles would easily be my top pick – a choice shared by many fellow sweet teeth in Australia. Introduced more than 25 years ago, these cute-as-a-button chocolates are the brand’s number one best-selling item. Every year, they produce a staggering 126 tonnes of them – that’s around 25 million individual speckles!
It’s a bit of a South Australian secret, but you can actually get a behind-the-scenes look at the chocolate-making process at the Haigh’s Visitor Centre in Adelaide. On my most recent trip, their beloved speckles just so happened to be on the production line – and I got to sample more than my fair share of both the milk and dark varieties. Fun fact: the speckles are actually made upside down, with button-sized dollops of molten chocolate dropped onto a tray filled with thousands of tiny, multi-coloured sugar beads.
Another Aussie icon, Haigh’s Milk Chocolate Frog, claims the title as the second-most popular product. Each year, the factory produces 6 million frogs across three sizes and four flavours – including peppermint, which is the fifth best-selling product.
It’s clear Aussies love anything coated in chocolate, whether it’s hard buttery caramel (#3), tart berries (#4), scorched almonds (#7) or divisive liquorice (#8). Meanwhile, the traditional blocks faced some stiff competition, with only one making the cut: the chunky Honeycomb Block
You can see where your fave Haigh’s chocolate ranks – or if it even made the top ten – below.
The 10 most popular Haigh’s chocolates
- Haigh’s Milk Chocolate Speckles
- Haigh’s Milk Chocolate Frogs
- Haigh’s Milk Caramel Chocs
- Haigh’s Berrychocs
- Haigh’s Milk Peppermint Frogs
- Haigh’s Honeycomb Block
- Haigh’s Milk & Dark Scorched Almonds
- Haigh’s Milk Liquorice Chocs
- Haigh’s Milk Roasted Macadamias
- Haigh’s Milk & Dark Chocolate Pastilles