Chocolate Anti Theft: London supermarkets lock up bars as shoplifting spikes
Chocolate Anti Theft measures have been rolled out in several UK stores after a rise in organised and prolific shoplifting targeting confectionery, with supermarkets locking bars in clear plastic boxes and police forces sharing footage of dramatic thefts.
Chocolate Anti Theft: why bars are being locked away
Chocolate bars are being placed in plastic security boxes in some UK shops because retailers and police forces warn thieves are stealing them to order. Retailers have fitted clear boxes, often with electronic alarms, and implemented shelf-edge protection or sliding plastic barriers that require customers to ask staff to open items marked as restricted.
Which products and stores are affected
Sainsbury's has introduced boxes on products regularly targeted, with £2. 60 bars of Cadbury Dairy Milk locked in one London branch. Bars of Cadbury Dairy Milk and Lindt have been secured in plastic boxes at supermarkets. In central London a Sainsbury's Local reportedly had 120g bars of Cadbury's Dairy Milk and Oreo retailing at £1. 50, reduced from £2. 40, inside security boxes. Higher-end brands including Tony’s Chocolonely at £3 and Green & Black’s and Lindt Excellence at £3. 85 have also been protected. Some shelves carry signs reading: "Restricted: For stock enquiries, please ask a member of staff. "
Police footage, arrests and the pattern of thefts
Individual police forces have documented a trend of chocolate being targeted. West Midlands Police shared CCTV footage of a man grabbing trays of chocolate outside a shop in Stourbridge, and Wiltshire Police shared video of a man dragging a whole shelving stand of chocolate out of a shop door. Earlier last year Cambridgeshire Police arrested a man wearing a coat full of Cadbury’s Crème Eggs. Cambridgeshire Police note chocolate is one of a number of high-value items thieves often target, alongside products such as alcohol, meat and coffee, and that retail theft has a lasting impact on businesses and staff who face abuse and intimidation.
Scale of the problem and retail losses
The British Retail Consortium's annual crime report found 5. 5 million detected incidents of shop theft last year and 1, 600 daily incidents of violence and abuse against retail workers. Although this represented a one-fifth fall on the previous year, it remained the second highest total on record. Retailers faced 5. 5 million incidents of shoplifting last year that cost more than £400m. Official figures published in July by the Office for National Statistics show 530, 643 shoplifting offences in 2024-2025, up 20% from 444, 022 in 2023-2024, the highest total since current police records began in 2002-2003.
Retailer and local business experiences
The Heart of England Co-Op group, which runs 38 stores across the West Midlands, Warwickshire, Leicestershire and Northamptonshire, says chocolate theft cost it £250, 000 last year; chocolate was the group's most stolen product in 2024 and in 2025 was topped only by alcohol. Chief executive Steve Browne describes chocolate theft as a massive issue, saying one individual could cost a shop thousands of pounds in a week, that thieves have been swiping whole shelves, and noting a shelf of chocolate could be worth about £500; the group has spent £3m on security and other measures to prevent thefts. Convenience store owner Sunita Aggarwal, who runs two stores in Leicester and Sheffield, has reduced the amount of chocolate on display in her Sheffield store because of increasing theft, saying people have been taking boxes of chocolate.
Industry response and calls for action
Retailers have invested heavily in anti-theft measures: the British Retail Consortium reports over £5bn invested in the last five years to tackle theft and crime, including plastic sliders on shelves, security tags and restricted fill. The Association of Convenience Stores highlights that chocolate and sweets are among the top three items targeted by shoplifters and that the problem has shifted from opportunistic one-off thefts to organised thefts for resale. The Association has called for more police support and stronger sentences for repeat offenders. Chief executive James Lowman has warned confectionery is being re-sold through illicit markets that help fund wider criminal activity and has urged action to shut down the networks that re-sell stolen goods.
What shoppers should expect
Customers can expect to see more chocolate kept in transparent security boxes and behind shelf barriers, with some stores asking shoppers to request staff assistance for access. Retail security measures and police work are being increased, but retailers and campaigners say further enforcement and tougher sentences are needed to address the organised resale that drives this targeted theft.
