Here is the latest of our student blogs by Richard Mason.

FOR more than eight years the Freddo Bar made in the UK by Cadbury, has been a cultural touchstone for generation “90s kid”. A way for the internet to vent its anger, in a satirical fashion, at the financial crisis they found themselves plunged into during the summer of 2007.

This 18 gram, frog-shaped chocolate bar may seem rather uninteresting to anyone growing up outside the UK but if you were raised in the 90s and early 00s it symbolised the only way to spend your last 10p and play surgeon to this infamous frog.

The reason for this infamy has been the drastic price increases inflicted on poor master Freddo, leaving the internet ablaze with a myriad of calls to recall the increase and restore childhood to its rose coloured hue.

But what can we learn about the financial crisis and how Cadbury faired throughout from Freddo and what can he tell us about the future?

Let’s start with the three price increases and how they correlate to major dates in the credit crunch.

The price of a Freddo was initially increased from 10p to 15p around September of 2007 right as the credit crunch kicked off, and amidst a whole country tightening its belts for what they knew lay ahead.

Price increases were happening across the supermarket shelves but Freddo stood out for the internet and anger started to swell.

The price stood at 15p for a three year period as the UK and the rest of the world struggled. With many countries falling into recession and some receiving substantial bailouts, the price of a Freddo was increased to 17p.

2011 saw bail outs for Ireland, Portugal and Greece’s second in just over a year.

The price of a Classic Freddo bar is raised to a riot-inducing, 20p.

This solidified the once cute and inoffensive frog as the leader of an angry generation. Facebook groups and many discussions cropped up with genuine and feigned anger being shown from many in generation Y.

The Kraft acquisition of Cadbury in early 2010 sparked the 17p rise as the American food manufacturer went on a restructuring mission in a bid to make the company financially viable again.

The increase to 20p can be seen as a direct result of Kraft splitting off confectionary into Mondelēz International and hoping to keep a steady revenue stream coming in the door.

In September of 2014 the price of a Freddo was increased to 25p: this can be explained by the rising cost of cocoa beans across the world, which has more than doubled since 2005 and continues to fluctuate.

Will the price of a Freddo ever be 10p again? No, inflation and the rise of VAT to 20% along with a large company like Kraft not wanting to bow to public demand however pitchfork-brandishing they may be.

This all means that never again will you wander into a newsagents at 8pm, rosy-faced and carefree, with your last ten pence clutched in your palm and be able to receive that final sugar rush of the day before bed.

We all have to grow up some day.