The Ferrero Group, a global confectionery corporation, announces acquisition of U.S. confectionery business from Nestlé for $2.8 billion. Best known for its Nutella®, Ferrero Rocher® and Tic Tac® breath mints, this transaction, Ferrero will become the third-largest confectionery company in the U.S. market.
Ferrero will acquire more than 20 iconic American brands which are explicitly known for their rich rooting in American heritage. Brands such as Butterfinger®, BabyRuth®, 100Grand®, Raisinets®, Wonka®, Crunch® as well as sugar brands such as SweeTarts®, LaffyTaffy®, and Nerds® are now all under the Ferrero name. In 2016, Nestlé U.S. revealed sales of approximately $900 million.
The Ferrero Group will acquire Nestlé’s U.S. manufacturing facilities in Bloomington, Franklin Park and Itasca, Illinois. The employees will continue to operate in Glendale, California, as well as from its locations in Illinois and in New Jersey.
Giovanni Ferrero, Executive Chairman of the Ferrero Group, said, “We are very excited about the acquisition of Nestlé’s U.S. confectionery business, which has an outstanding portfolio of iconic brands with rich histories and tremendous awareness. In combination with Ferrero’s existing U.S. presence, including the recently acquired Fannie May Confections Brands and the Ferrara Candy Company, we will have substantially greater scale, a broader offering of high-quality products to customers across the chocolate snack, sugar confectionery and seasonal categories, and exciting new growth opportunities in the world’s largest confectionery market. We look forward to welcoming the talented team from Nestlé to Ferrero and to continuing to invest in and grow all of our products and brands in this key strategic and attractive market.”
“Our commitment to deliver value to the North American consumers and customers will be strongly enhanced by the arrival in our portfolio of such powerful confectionery and chocolate brands,” said Lapo Civiletti, CEO of the Ferrero Group.
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals and is expected to close around the end of the first quarter of 2018.