Cadbury fans have been left devastated after the chocolate giant revealed a fan favourite will be missing from Heroes boxes this Christmas.

The Chocolate Eclair will not appear in the popular selection box this festive season, with the Cadbury Flake taking its place.

Chocolate fans have been left devastated by the news, with many saying Eclairs – which joined the boxes as a replacement for the Dream bar in 2008 – are their favourite.

Writing on the Christmas Countdown UK Facebook page, many fans asked why the Flake was chosen ‘when you already have a Twirl’ in the box.

‘Flake and Twirl are the same,’ one person noted.

‘I used to eat the Eclairs first. My favourite – that’s a shame. Flake is just chocolate, you already have Twirl and Dairy Milk’.

The Flake will join the Heroes line-up, comprising of other fan-favourite treats such as Dairy Milk Caramel, Wispa, Creme Egg Twisted, Twirl, and Dinky Decker.

Some wondered why Cadbury had decided to ditch the Eclair instead of the Twister because ‘who wants an Easter product at Christmas’ while others took the opportunity to bemoan the loss of Cadbury Spira – which was axed in 2005.

‘Who even likes Flake,’ one person wrote. ‘Why couldn’t they give us the Spira we’ve been asking for for years?’

The decision to ditch the Eclairs, however, was met with approval by some fans, as one pointed out ‘the eclairs always got left’ over.

Another said: ‘Glad they replaced them with the Flake never ate them.’

‘Gooooood éclairs are vile,’ a third declared, while a fourth consumer shared: ‘Glad eclairs are going. I love a cadburys crème egg but don’t like the twisted ones in the heroes.’

It comes after the brand made a huge change to its Heroes packaging by trailing new paper tubs in place of the old plastic ones in a bid to be more sustainable and eco-friendly.

Mondelēz International, which owns Cadbury, collaborated with sustainable packaging company DS Smith to produce 300,000 Heroes paper tubs which are now being spotted at Tesco stores across the UK

A representative for the brand said: ‘The paper tubs will only be available in Tesco as part of a trial, testing out the new packaging.’

These new, more sustainable tubs are the only Heroes packs that don’t contain Eclairs.

This means those with a serious attachment to the treat should ensure they buy a regular plastic tub instead of the new paper ones.

Christina Bland, brand manager for Cadbury, said of the trial and the swap: ‘The Heroes paper tub trial represents a step in our active work to explore new packaging solutions for our portfolio.

‘This trial will inform our long-term packaging approach, and we are also excited to introduce Cadbury Flake to the assortment for this trial, offering a new favourite for consumers to enjoy.’

Cadbury’s paper tub trial comes after it committed to ditching plastic packaging in a bid to cut down on waste and the use of virgin plastic.

Its collaborative partner on the new tubs, DS Smith, said it has taken ‘several years of research and development’ to produce the paper tub for the confectionery brand.

Customers who purchase the paper tub are invited to give their feedback by scanning a QR code on the inside of the lid.

The QR code will also give customers more information on packaging and materials, and an on-pack recycling label will help them with disposal information.

Joanna Dias, UK sustainability lead at Mondelēz International, said: ‘We are extremely proud to announce the new Cadbury Heroes paper tubs and are excited to hear consumer feedback on the new packaging.

‘The paper tubs demonstrate Mondelēz’s commitment to driving sustainable packaging solutions.

‘This test and learn initiative in partnership with Tesco will help inform our long-term efforts to reduce virgin plastic.’

Tesco shoppers who have already spotted these eco-friendly boxes have mixed feelings, with one person suggesting they will probably ‘end up getting ripped’ at the shops.

Writing on the Snack Reviews Facebook page, they noted: ‘The new box is gonna end up getting ripped though so many of those tubs will end up getting wasted before they’re sold.’

Another added: ‘This is great for the environment, but wouldn’t tins be better and encourage people to reuse them for different things?’

However, a third added felt that since most Cadbury lovers probably already have the Heroes tin boxes, they could simply re-fill them with chocolates and toffees before recycling the new cardboard boxes.

‘Love the idea of paper ones because i already have the tins so i can just fill them up,’ the Facebook user shared.