The Real Reason You're No Longer Able To Buy Starburst In Australia

Sweet strawberry, tart cherry, or citrusy orange and lemon — the great debate over the best Starburst flavor is an ongoing battle. It even went so far that Mars-Wrigley released an all-pink pack of Starburst, seemingly agreeing that pink was the superior flavor (via Starburst). According to Savvy Statistics, people voted pink Starburst as their favorite flavor out of the standard four, while yellow fell flat as the least favorite; red and orange were close in value for second and third place.

Over the years, Starburst has released different variations of the sweets — gummies and minis for texture and size differences, and different flavor packs, like tropical, sour, berry, and superfruit (via Americano Goodies). Unfortunately, Starburst lovers in Australia haven't been able to easily find even the original flavored sweets on store shelves for the last few months, and Mars-Wrigley just released an explanation for their absence — but it doesn't look like they will be coming back any time soon.

The Mars-Wrigley company confirmed that Starburst will no longer be available to purchase in Australia, according to The Guardian. Consumers have reportedly been struggling to find the fruit-flavored sweets in stores for a while now, and the company confirmed their departure from the country.

According to Confectionary News, the candy line was removed in June due to rising production costs. They explain that Starburst are manufactured in Europe and imported to Australia, adding an additional shipping cost on that isn't present with some of their other candies — M&Ms, Skittles, Snickers, and more are produced locally in Australia, per The Guardian. Mars-Wrigley explained that the decision was impacted by supply chain costs and rising cost pressures.

Though Starburst may no longer be widely available throughout Australia, they may not be gone for good — The Guardian notes that they may still be available in specialty candy shops and international food stores, though there are currently no plans to widely redistribute the candy in the future.