Astros were first launched in 1997 by Cadbury in the United Kingdom, Canada, USA as well as in South Africa as a rival to Nestlé Smarties, and M&M's in the US .[1] The confectionery can be described as a candy coated chocolate with a biscuit centre. They have since been discontinued in the UK, but are still sold in South Africa. In Australia they were marketed as Lunas.