http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4276553.stm
Childhood may never be quite the same again - the maker of Smarties has announced it is to ditch the colourful chocolates' tube-shaped packet.
Nestle Rowntree is to replace the beloved 68-year-old cylindrical design with a hexagonal or six-sided pack.
The removable plastic lid on the current design will also go in favour of a cardboard flip-top.
Nestle Rowntree said the revamp was needed to ensure the brand remained "fresh and interesting" to youngsters.
Space rockets
Smarties have been sold in a cylinder-shaped packet since the sweets were first launched by Rowntree's of York in 1937.
They were originally called Chocolate Beans but were renamed a year later.
Since then empty tubes have been used by creative children to make everything from space rockets to castles, while the removable plastic lids were collected for the letters of the alphabet that were imprinted underneath.
The new so-called Hexatube packet will go into stores during the summer.
Spill-resistant
"We don't change something this famous just because we feel like it," said Neil Ducray, director of marketing at Nestle Rowntree.
"We have done research that shows kids today have so many different influences that we need to keep the brand and the packaging fresh and interesting for them.
"We decided on the Hexatube shape because it has a tactile feel with lots of edges.
"Mothers also like the new end because it doesn't come off easily and spill the Smarties on the floor."
World stretching
Swiss-based Nestle, which bought Rowntree back in 1988, denied suggestions that the redesign was to save costs.
It reassured fans that the new pack would still contain the same number of Smarties - about 48 per tube - and will continue to sell for approximately 33p.
The sugar-coated chocolate sweets will also retain the same eight colours - red, orange, yellow, green, mauve, pink, brown and blue.
If all the Smarties eaten in one year were laid end to end it would equal almost 63,380 miles, more than two-and-a-half times around the Earth's equator.
I guess I will miss it.
