WE HEART NUTELLA
Every February, while the world is gearing up for Valentine's Day, we celebrate one of our first loves at Ferrero: our beloved Nutella, which was born in 1964.
That makes it a very special birthday for Nutella this year. The spread is turning an incredible 60 years old. For six decades, people have been brightening their day with Nutella - spreading positivity and feeding togetherness, it brings unbeatable taste and enjoyment to our tables. A jar of Nutella is sold every two seconds, and it is enjoyed by millions throughout 170 countries.
An unexpected beginning
But where did it all begin?
The Nutella we know and love today started out as a product known as Pasta Gianduja. It was developed by Ferrero’s founder, Pietro Ferrero, and was originally produced in loaves, wrapped in aluminium foil, and cut into slices. It had been created in response to cocoa supply shortages after the Second World War – using just a small amount of cocoa, its main ingredient was hazelnuts, which were considered a local delicacy in Pietro’s town of Piedmont, Italy.
A couple of decades later, Nutella would be officially launched by Pietro’s son, Michele Ferrero. It was a first of its kind, and a prime example of how our company likes to think differently to others: we pioneered the cocoa-based spread, while others focused on making solid chocolate.
What you might not know is that Nutella is especially important to our current Executive Chairman Giovanni Ferrero, who has an extra special bond with the spread, given he was born in the same year. As he puts it:
“It all started immediately after the Second World War. Chocolate was so expensive – nobody could afford it, at least in Italy. We had our formula of chocolate; it was rooted in the local community in Alba because hazelnuts were abundant. Our vision was, ‘How can we make a new recipe with less cocoa and the high nutritional value from hazelnuts?‘ My grandfather lived to find this formula. Finally, he went out with a recipe, which he called quite simply Super Crema.
What is fascinating about an entrepreneurial family is that 20 years after, his son, my father, went in and said, ‘We can push it further; there are new technologies, there are new ways to integrate this winning recipe’. And he went out with Nutella, which was born the same year as I was born, 1964. So, I have a small brother in the family, which is Nutella!”
Of course, Nutella’s story didn’t end there. We kept on innovating. Nutella is a brand that has been able to evolve over the past 60 years, always finding new ways to surprise and delight its fans around the globe. The Nutella family has grown with a range of new product experiences, allowing people to love and enjoy it in new ways. These include Nutella & GO!, which we launched in 2005, Nutella B-ready in 2015, the Nutella Biscuit in 2019, the Nutella Muffin in 2020 and, just last year, we even launched the Nutella Croissant.
We know Nutella is adored worldwide, and that’s why we’re committed to pushing ahead with even more innovation. Watch this space as we continue to expand the Nutella family of products and experiences in the future.
Spreading the love
…and it’s certainly built a remarkable fan base over the years. Love and passion for Nutella saw World Nutella Day introduced in 2007 by Italo-American blogger Sara Rosso. Every February 5th, all fans of Nutella are called to unite and celebrate the brand they adore. But it doesn’t stop there. We also welcome fans from across the world to our dedicated Nutella Café, which we opened in Chicago in 2017.
But, as much as we love to keep changing the game, one thing that has stayed the same since 1964 is our commitment to consistent taste and quality for all of our consumers, no matter where they are in the world. We still use our “sacco conosciuto” (the known bag) approach to select quality ingredients that respect our commitments to sustainability.
Celebrating 60years of smiles
We want to celebrate 60 years of Nutella by spreading the power of smiles. This has been the Nutella mission since the very first jar of it was sold – and through continued passion, creativity and innovation, it will keep the world smiling for many more years. For more information on how we’re celebrating, visit our Nutella website: www.nutella.com
