PUSEY, England—From a stately manor home in the Oxfordshire countryside, a descendent of John Cadbury, founder of the British chocolate maker that bears his name, is fighting to prevent the company's attempted takeover by Kraft Foods Inc. of the U.S.

Yet despite this country's well-known love of Cadbury PLC chocolate—sometimes called the taste of British childhood—Felicity Loudon's battle to preserve the company's independence is more of a Quixotic fight rather than a populist cause.

Ms. Loudon, an interior designer and Mr. Cadbury's great-great granddaughter, is opposed to Kraft's proposed acquisition on the basis of both style and substance.