High cocoa prices and increased manufacturing costs mean chocolate prices remain stubbornly high.
The high cost of cocoa has been linked to a combination of weather events and a virus affecting some cocoa crops, creating global supply issues.
Chocolate prices are not expected to come down any time soon, and one smaller producer says the cost may lead to consumers eating less but higher quality chocolate.
For many Australians, chocolate is a non-negotiable mood lifter, especially during hard times.
But over the past few years, as grocery prices have continued to rise, those feeding a chocolate habit have been paying more at the check-out.
Chocolate prices have climbed, driven by a cocoa price.
Associate Professor of supply chain management at Edith Cowan University, Flavio Macau, has looked at the rising cost of a 180-gram block of Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate.
In May 2024, a block cost $6 at both supermarkets, Woolworths and Coles.
While the blocks go on special from time to time, the price of a block has remained at $8 at the supermarkets this year.
"I don't think we're going to see any time soon chocolate pricing going back to what it was a couple of years ago," Rabobank senior analyst Michael Harvey said.
The cost of cocoa reached an all-time high of $US 12,000 a tonne in 2024.
It peaked again in 2025 before dropping down to around $US 2,600 a tonne in February this year.
The price per tonne has been going up again in recent months.
"It's been a very volatile ride," Mr Harvey said.
As an ingredient, the high price of cocoa has led to higher chocolate prices.
A spokesperson for Cadbury's parent company, Mondelez, said cocoa prices were still well above pre-crisis levels, and the price of other ingredients and manufacturing had also increased.
"We work hard to absorb these cost increases where possible while ensuring that we can continue to provide the high-quality, great-tasting chocolate," the spokesperson said.
The company spokesperson said it was focused on strengthening the sustainability and resilience of cocoa, "including investing in climate-smart farming, improving productivity and expanding the geographic diversity of supply".
Helen Curtis and her husband Maurice make chocolate from scratch at their business in Richmond in Tasmania's south.
The business buys its cacao beans from eight different countries including Peru, Papua New Guinea and Australia.
"Pre-COVID, cacao bean prices were about $8 a kilo whereas current prices are around $20 a kilo," Ms Curtis said.
She said she had always paid more for beans.
"We have relationships with farmers … you're paying sustainable prices to help support those families."
But the rising cost of beans has meant she has had to put her prices up. She said that had affected sales "a little bit".
Ms Curtis said higher prices might lead to consumers eating less chocolate but buying better quality, rather than consuming larger amounts of cheaper chocolate with high sugar content.
"When I was little … rather than eating in bulk quantity, we had little bits; we savoured it," she said.
There is a risk cocoa prices could rise again.
The declaration of an active El Niño could play havoc with global weather conditions.
Australian Food and Grocery Council chief executive Colm Maguire said "even if cocoa eases further, the overall basket of costs hitting all manufacturers — like energy, packaging and transport — are still high".
"That's exactly why we need to keep working on Australia's competitiveness, making it more affordable to make products Australians love is a win for manufacturers and chocolate lovers," he said.
Whey, a by-product of cheesemaking, has also been increasing in price.
It is high in protein and has become popular as a supplement to build muscle.
Whey can be found in shakes, as well as a range of other foods like milk, cheese, yoghurt and products promoted as being high in protein.
The demand for the product has driven the price hike.
Mr Harvey said it was not easy to ramp up whey production.