2016 HAS PROVED to be a challenging year for chocolate lovers.

First, they took away the Toffee Deluxe Quality Street. Then, they downsized our Terry’s Chocolate Oranges. THEN, they dared to feck up our beloved Toblerones. Now they’re at it again.

Share bags of Maltesers, treats beloved of cinema-goers and couch-dwellers alike, have been reduced in size. The lighter way to enjoy chocolate, indeed.

One shopper noticed that bags that used to be 121g are now 103g, a reduction of 18g:

According to Metro, they appear to have reduced the prices to match the new size, with the 103g pouch down from £1.82 to £1.50.

The shrinkage has been dubbed #maltesergate online and, as with previous chocolate scandals, people feel deeply betrayed:

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A spokesperson for Mars explained the change to DailyEdge.ie:

Like all chocolate manufacturers, we have seen the cost of raw materials rise and, while we try to absorb these pressures as much as possible, sometimes we have to make the difficult decision to reduce the size of some of our products so our consumers can continue to enjoy an affordable treat.

Another huge blow for the chocolate world.

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More: People are finding ingenious ways to use those new Toblerone bars>