BRITAIN'S biggest selling chocolate bar, KitKat, is to get a wrapping make-over for the 21st Century.

Nestle Rowntree said yesterday that it had decided to have a break with 66 years of tradition and get rid of the crunchy fingers' famous "foil and wrap" packaging.

Instead, it will get a state-of-the-art "flow-wrapper" coloured on the outside and silver on the inside like its younger relative KitKat Chunky bar, which was introduced to British sweet shelves two years ago.

Nestle said the new packaging would keep the snack at "optimum freshness" for up to three times longer.

However, it said fans of tradition would still be able to enjoy the old paper and foil wrapping as the new packaging only applied to its four-finger bar.

The KitKat was first made in 1935 at the Rowntree's factory in York, when it was sold as "Chocolate Crisp" and took on its traditional name two years later.

Nestle, which still employs thousands making the snack at York, says 47 of the bars are eaten every second.

A tear-strip in the new packs runs parallel with the third finger of the bar so that one finger of KitKat can be revealed and snapped off at a time.

A spokesman said: "This is an important ritual for many consumers and one that we are keen to maintain."

"We simply decided it was time to move with the times."