Nutella is one of the most popular sandwich spreads in the world. The manufacturer, Ferrero, uses over a quarter of the world’s entire supply of hazelnuts. The success of Nutella actually made CEO Michele Ferrero the richest person in Italy and the 20th richest person in the world.
Despite its success today, Nutella was first created through necessity. During World War II, cocoa was a rare and expensive ingredient in Italy. Michele’s father, Pietro, capitalized on this.
He made a sweet paste that was predominantly hazelnuts and sugar as an alternative to expensive chocolate spreads. He called this product Giandujot. A few years later in 1951, the formula was altered to turn it into a spread. They repackaged it in a jar and named it SuperCrema.
But it was Michele who turned it into the Nutella with which we’re familiar. He knew that the recipe could be improved and, through trial and error, revamped the spread by adding vegetable oil and palm oil.
The first jar of this new Nutella left the factory in 1964 and became an instant hit. Michele personally created the first recipe. Before he died in 2015, he had turned his father’s single-shop business into a global food empire. The Ferrero company is still owned by the Ferrero family.
In 2013 thieves in Germany stole 20,000 Euros worth of Nutella
In 2003 in Germany, a group of thieves stole over 5 tons of Nutella from a parked trailer in the central German town of Bad Hersfeld. At the time, police reports concluded that the products were stolen for retail in underground markets and websites. This is largely due to the possibility of a new tax law on chocolate in Europe at the time.
Each day 1.35 million pounds of Nutella are produced
Over 1.35 million pounds of the famous hazelnut spread, Nutella is produced annually all over the world. Additionally, over 250,000 tons of Nutella are sold each year in over 75 different countries worldwide where the nine major global companies are based in Europe, Russia, North America, South America, and Australia.
According to the Ferrero company’s statistics, France is considered to be the largest consumer of Nutella in the world where over 25% of the world’s production is consumed and produced each year. This hazelnut spread can be found in various desserts and dishes in France such as ice cream, breakfast staples, bread, and many more.
