The Ferrero US candy empire now stretches from a $2.8 billion deal for Nestlé’s American confectionery portfolio to a freshly opened chocolate factory in Illinois, placing the Italian family-owned group firmly behind only Hershey and Mars in the world’s largest sweets market, according to CNBC, citing Evercore ISI.
A decade ago, Ferrero employed around 300 people in the United States. Today that figure stands at more than 5,100, spread across eight offices and twelve plants and warehouses in the US, Canada, and Mexico, according to a company press release on PR Newswire.
How Ferrero Built a US Candy Empire From the Ground Up
The transformation began in earnest with the purchase of Nestlé’s US confectionery arm, a transaction that brought more than 20 American brands under Ferrero ownership, including Butterfinger and Baby Ruth. The acquired business had generated sales of approximately $900 million in 2016, according to the Ferrero newsroom.
Ferrero followed that deal by acquiring Fannie May Confections Brands and the Harry London chocolate labels from 1-800-FLOWERS.com, picking up a manufacturing facility in Ohio and two warehouse and distribution sites in Ohio and Illinois, as reported by PR Newswire. The group’s affiliated companies page also records the 2018 purchase of the Kellogg fruit snacks business, including the Stretch Island and Fruity Snacks lines, alongside Keebler’s ice cream cones and pie crust products.
The most recent large move came with the completion of the WK Kellogg acquisition for $3.1 billion, pushing Ferrero beyond confectionery into the US breakfast cereal aisle, according to Confectionery Production. Ferrara Candy Company, affiliated with Ferrero, has also separately proposed acquiring CPK Group, the European portfolio behind Terry’s Chocolate and other French and European candy brands.
Factories and Flavours: Ferrero Bets on Local Production
Buying brands is only half the strategy. Ferrero has invested heavily in US manufacturing capacity, opening its first-ever North American chocolate factory in Bloomington, Illinois, a $75 million project. On the same campus the group announced a $214 million Kinder Bueno production facility expected to create 200 jobs, with the Bloomington site also manufacturing CRUNCH, 100 Grand, and Raisinets, according to the same PR Newswire release.
At the same time, Ferrero opened its first North American Innovation Centre and R&D Labs in Chicago’s historic Marshall Field and Company Building. The 45,000-square-foot facility brings together Ferrero’s R&D teams across the United States.
The localisation push extends to ingredients. Oregon, which produces 99% of the nation’s hazelnut crop according to the US Department of Agriculture as cited by Food Dive, is now a key source for Ferrero’s supply chain, feeding both Nutella and Ferrero Rocher production.
The most pointed expression of that local focus is Nutella Peanut, described by CNBC as the brand’s first flavour innovation in its over 60-year history. The product was developed specifically for the North American market, where peanut butter is a staple in more than 90% of households. It uses hazelnuts from Oregon and peanuts from Georgia and other South-eastern states, and is manufactured at Ferrero’s Franklin Park, Illinois plant, following a $75 million investment in a dedicated production line that created 50 new jobs, according to Yahoo Finance reporting on a Ferrero North America press release. Butterfinger and Baby Ruth have been made at the same Franklin Park site since the 1960s.
Ferrero produces around 365,000 tonnes of Nutella each year across more than 18 factories worldwide, making the spread available in around 160 countries, according to We the Italians.
The commercial results are beginning to reflect the scale of the investment. Ferrero’s US business recorded 3.4% dollar growth in the 52 weeks ended April 20, 2025, according to the company as cited by CNBC. Ferrero Rocher held a 2% share of the US chocolate market in the 12 weeks ended April 6, 2025, per Circana data cited by the same report.
Whether the WK Kellogg integration can push Ferrero past Mars into second place in the US rankings is the next test for an empire that has moved faster than almost any European rival in remaking the American sweets aisle.