Ferrero’s U.S. snack push faces its biggest test with a $3.1 billion cereal bet

Ferrero, best known for Nutella and Ferrero Rocher, now owns a wide range of familiar American brands including Baby Ruth, Butterfinger, Froot Loops, and Frosted Flakes. The privately held company has more than 50 brands in its U.S. portfolio across chocolate, candy, mints, cookies, and breakfast cereal. Its U.S. business has changed sharply: the company says the U.S. now accounts for about 15% of global revenue, up from about 4% a decade ago.

Ferrero’s U.S. buying spree began in 2017 with its $115 million acquisition of Fannie May, followed by a $2.8 billion deal for Nestlé’s U.S. confectionery business, adding Butterfinger, Baby Ruth, and Crunch. In 2019, it acquired Kellogg’s cookie and fruit-snack businesses, including Keebler and Famous Amos. Its biggest U.S. move came with the $3.1 billion acquisition of WK Kellogg, bringing cereal brands such as Froot Loops, Frosted Flakes, Corn Flakes, and Rice Krispies into the portfolio.

Acquisitions are only part of Ferrero’s U.S. strategy. In 2023, the company opened a 45,000-square-foot innovation and research center in Chicago for brands including Keebler, Famous Amos, Mother’s, and Fannie May. Ferrero has also introduced Nutella Peanut, the brand’s first new flavor in more than 60 years, after about five years of development and a $75 million production-line investment at its Franklin Park, Illinois, factory.

Ferrero has invested heavily in U.S. production, including its first chocolate-processing facility in North America, opened in Bloomington, Illinois, in 2024. The site produces chocolate for brands including Kinder, Ferrero Rocher, Butterfinger, and Crunch, and Ferrero has invested more than $200 million to add Kinder Bueno production there. The company says it now employs more than 5,000 people across North America, compared with a few hundred roughly a decade ago.

Ferrero’s U.S. revenue has grown from roughly $600 million in 2017 to about $3 billion, helped by acquisitions and manufacturing investments. But the WK Kellogg deal adds exposure to a cereal business where sales had been under pressure before the acquisition was announced. The company’s challenge is clear: buying well-known brands gives Ferrero a strong starting point, but keeping them relevant in American pantries will determine how far the expansion can go.