About 30 years later Cadbury was born when John Bull Cadbury, a Birmingham tea shop owner, began selling drinking chocolate in his shop.

Dairy Milk is one of the biggest brands

The two companies merged in 1969 to form Cadbury Schweppes, now the world's fourth largest confectionery and second largest soft drinks supplier.

Since 1969 the company has steadily grown and, through a series of acquisitions, now owns some of the most famous confectionery and beverage brands in the world.

These include Cadbury's Dairy Milk, Roses, Flake, Trebor Bassett, Schweppes, Dr Pepper, Canada Dry and 7-Up.

Key Facts

Cadbury Schweppes employs more than 36,000 people and its products are sold in 200 countries.

Cadbury Trebor Bassett, the company's confectionery division, is the biggest sweet maker in the UK with a 28% market share.

Nestle and Mars, the nearest rivals, each have a 20% share.

The company has aggressively pursued a strategy of growth through investment and acquisition.

Analyst Outlook

Nicola Marsden from ING Barings rates the shares a "buy".

She says: "They are cheap compared to other European food stocks such as Nestle, although the company does have a large US exposure, which could be grounds for concern.

"The company has made some good growth acquisitions over the last couple of years. It is focusing on core business products and continually developing new strands."

On The Markets

Cadbury Schweppes is typically viewed as a defensive stock, one that is resistant to falling markets.

John: "We don't want (the share price) to shoot up 100% tomorrow."

Over the past year, its share price has fluctuated between 408p and 500p. It is currently trading at about 445p.

John Sunderland says: "I hope the share price will continue to reflect the implicit value and future value of Cadbury Schweppes.

"I don't want it to shoot up 100% tomorrow and then have us fall into the 90% club the next day. We are happy where we are."

The company is in the midst of suing PepsiCo for alleged anti-competitive behaviour, claiming that it stifled sales of the soft drink 7-Up in several fast food chains in the US.

Fair Price for Cocoa

The price of cocoa is at an all-time low, and many people feel that the chocolate manufacturers are not paying a fair price.

When asked how he felt about such accusations, John said: "It's not an issue that we can directly influence. There is a world trade in cocoa and the price is affected entirely by supply on one hand and demand on the other."

He adds that he expects prices to increase in the coming year.

Just for fun

And lastly a few facts to impress your friends with.

If all the Cadbury's Dairy Milk bars sold each year where spread out on the ground, they would cover every Premiership and Nationwide league pitch five times over.

Bassett's Jelly Babies were launched as Peace Babies in 1918 to celebrate the end of World War One. They changed to their present name in 1953 when sweet rationing ended.