Japanese are munching their way through more chocolate than ever, but local manufacturers are not satisfied and have launched a string of new products and positive health campaigns to target the country's sweet tooth.

A campaign to change the belief that chocolate is bad for you as well as new types of tempting snacks helped push chocolate consumption to a record high last year, industry officials say.

But despite some success, Japanese makers have their work cut out persuading people to eat more chocolate instead of traditional sweets, whose light taste is more in tune with the nation's palate, industry experts say.