The Kinder candy company had an extensive license to produce a number of Lord of the Rings consumer premiums over a range of products, in a number of countries, including primarily Germany, but also Austria, Japan, Italy, Brazil, and France. 

Most, however, came from Germany, and this combined with the name Kinder (meaning "children" in German) leads most collectors to associate the LOTR collectibles with Germany.

This license extended over all three movies, and included small figures, stickers, box sets, and other items.

Kinder (meaning "children" in German) is a division of Ferrero SpA, which also owns the Ferrero-Roche, Nutella, and Tic-Tac brands, amongst others. Ferrero launched the Kinder division in 1968, as a childrens' brand, hence the name.

In 1989 Kinder introduced the phenomenally successful KinderSurprise, a delicious hollow chocolate egg, which hid a toy inside. Think CrackerJack surprises, only far more elaborate and imaginative.

I once opened a KinderSurprise to find an ingeniously designed working merry-go-round, in pieces, inside the tiny capsule.

Unfortunately, the US has laws about putting objects in food, so while the candy with prizes is sold in most the rest of the world, they are unfamiliar to US consumers. KinderSurpise is sold in Canada, but Kinder did not have any licensing rights for North America, so Canada did not receive the LOTR displays.

Kinder created a series of handpainted miniature Lord of the Rings characters to fit inside these eggs.  Some, like the three inch tall Treebeard, require assembly. Some, like the small Gollum on a rock, do not.

The LOTR  figures were inserted in special displays at the ratio of about 1 per 5 or 8 eggs. A buyer was not guaranteed of getting a LOTR figure, but, at the price of about $.60 cents US, an avid fan would buy as many eggs as needed to complete their set.

Brilliant marketing!

Over the years, a strong collectibles market has developed around the KinderSurpise toys, which has resulted in an especially strong demand for the LOTR figures, since both Kinder and LOTR collectors seek them out.  Kinder has the same kind of international name recognition and corporate "feel good" as Coca-Cola, which also started as a product, and unintentionally evolved into a collectible. Both now intentionally feed their collectibles market with desireable new items each year.

Kinder also developed boxed sets of Lord of the Rings figures for each movie. The best of the handpainted figures were assembled into hand-numbered, limited edition sets, and sold direct to collectors. No candy was included. These sets are extremely limited, and a boxed set, known as a "Diorama", generally fetches in the range of 60-80 euro and more. They are difficult and expensive to get ahold of, and are getting more so.

Dioramas are slipcovered with a paper band, and tied with a silky ribbon. Inside is a custom plastic pack, designed to hold the figures comfortably.

A secondary market developed in Germany, producing special cardboard displays for collectors to show off their LOTR figures. These displays are produced by a company called Dragon Designs, and are also often called dioramas, which tends to confuse collectors. These dioramas appear to be authorized by Kinder, but are not part of the Kinder collectibles.  They are also limited editions, no longer in production, and fetch nice prices on the secondary market themselves.  Dioramas include a waterfall scene, reminiscent of the Rangers' secret lair, and also a castle scene, intended to recall Minas Tirith.

In addition, Kinder made several "special" boxed candy sets, including a set that came with a Treebeard and Saruman with special light-up palantir. There was also a round box set, with a puzzle afixed to the lid and a special Shadowfax figure inside.

Kinder also produced a series of stickers, which were inserted in their small Kinder Reigel chocolate bars. There was a complete series for each movie, usually around 24 stickers per movie. To guarantee a receptive audience, they distributed free sticker posters at retailers. These colorful posters folded out to be quite large, and included movie trivia, cast information, and colorful movie photographs.

It is possible to make a very satisfying, interesting, and colorful collection of Lord of the Rings movie collectibles, based on only various Kinder premiums.