The creme eggs are now made from a different chocolate.

A controversial change to the creme egg recipe has not paid off for chocolate giant Cadbury.

The chocolate giant's best-selling Easter lines lost more than £10 million (NZ$22 million) in sales last year, the Daily Telegraph reported.

Sales of crème egg are steady in New Zealand, a Cadbury NZ spokesman said.

SUPPLIED The recipe for Cadbury's Creme Egg was controversially altered.

Research by trade magazine The Grocer found that the Creme Egg was the biggest loser after US owner Mondelez sparked controversy in Britain by replacing the Dairy Milk in its recipe with cheaper chocolate. Filled and shell Creme Eggs lost more than £6m,the study said.

However, Mondelez insists that the recipe change did not have an impact.

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Marketing manager Claire Low told The Grocer that despite the change, the fundamentals of Cadbury Creme Egg "remain exactly the same".

Low acknowledged that with this Easter the earliest since 2008, recovering lost sales would be a tall order.

"We are aware shorter seasons can be challenging.

"To strengthen our positioning, we will continue to invest in power brands, launching new seasonal products and a brand new Easter pack design."

The brand will face competition after the launch of Mars' Galaxy Golden Eggs and Ferrero's Kinder Joy.

A Cadbury spokesman said "Cadbury remains the number one treat at Easter".

"The Easter 'season' changes every year depending on when Easter falls. It was two weeks shorter in 2015 than 2014 so it's hard to compare like for like.

"This is why most of the big chocolate brands show a fall in revenue for 2015 against 2014. We are proud to be the nation's favourite at Easter and we will continue to strengthen our position by investing in power brands and launching new seasonal products."