A recent Cadbury campaign called ‘Freddo Treasures’ has been criticised by many UK archaeologists for promoting the looting of historical sites by unlicensed metal detecting. Cadbury’s took the website down following complaints. Michael Ellis called the campaign “irresponsible” and DCMS has reportedly invited Cadbury UK to a meeting, at which concerns from archaeologists could be raised.
Many archaeologists have said that this campaign could set the country back in terms of its perceptions of archaeology and Treasure. The Chartered Institute for Archaeologists (CIfA) [Alliance Member] thanked those who pointed out the faults in the campaign and said it hopes that Cadbury “will accept the offer of advice from professional archaeologists to develop a campaign that can inspire and engage young people in a responsible way”.