Ferrero Hazelnut Company supports development of US crops with major research grants
Ferrero has granted key research awards to help boost hazelnut production in the US. Pic: Ferrero
A key industry initiative has been launched by the Ferrero Hazelnut Company (Ferrero HCo), which has moved to help expand US hazelnut crops with delivering a total of $350,000 in valuable research grants, writes Neill Barston.
As the company explained, this included some $180,000 awarded to Oregon State University and $170,000 to Rutgers University, which are part of the Italian-founded company’s commitment to using high-quality, fresh ingredients.
According to the business, the funding is set to help support the universities’ collaborative efforts with local farmers, producers, and distributors, to advance sustainability and efficiency in the industry.
Notably, as Confectionery Production has previously covered, Hazelnuts remain an essential ingredient for Ferrero’s well-loved brands like Ferrero Rocher, the #1 premium chocolate brand in the U.S., and Nutella, a power-brand that includes the leading spreads snack in the U.S. convenience channel, Nutella & Go.
As a versatile, premium ingredient, hazelnuts are in high demand during seasonal celebrations across North America, such as the upcoming winter holidays. To ensure year-around availability, the company has diversified its hazelnut sourcing globally to support its rapid growth, especially in North America.
“Our mission is to master the hazelnut value chain from end-to-end to create and deliver value in service of customers, brands, and products,” said Tommaso de Gregorio, Head of Ferrero’s Agri Competence Centre. “This is particularly important in North America where we have invested billions of dollars in growth and innovation over the past decade.”
For years Ferrero has partnered with Oregon State University and the state’s growers to foster and strengthen hazelnut cultivation in the Willamette Valley. Recently the company has doubled its hazelnut sourcing from the area and to date has donated over $760,000 to OSU agriculture programs. Ferrero’s latest grant of $180,000 will support multiple ongoing projects including biological control of invasive species, diseases, and fungi as well as integrated weed management within orchards, all with the goal of reducing herbicide.
“Ferrero’s support over the years has helped cement Oregon as a world leader in hazelnut orchard productivity and nut quality,” said Nik Wiman, Associate Professor in Oregon State’s College of Agricultural Sciences. “Ferrero’s latest support helps us to meet new challenges and provide effective solutions for growers to improve grower profitability and industry sustainability.”
New Jersey has emerged as a leader in introducing hazelnut growing to the East Coast, supported by research and breeding programs at Rutgers University. A sum of $170,000 will be donated to Rutgers over four years as part of a long-term disease study, which supports the development of hazelnut varieties that can resist EFB through genetic improvement. This on top of $60,000 from a partnership with Ferrero that started in 2020.
The company has now been in the US market since 1969, and has grown to more than 5,400 employees in 15 plants and warehouses, and eight offices in North America across the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. Among its key achievements, the business has added major brands including Butterfinger, CRUNCH, Keebler, Famous Amos and Mother’s Cookies.
In addition hazelnut cultivation, Ferrero Group has recently invested heavily in logistics, R&D, and manufacturing capabilities in North America. The company’s multiple expansions to its manufacturing campuses in Bloomington, Illinois and Brantford, Ontario have created hundreds of new local jobs, and the company’s first ever North American Innovation Centre and R&D Labs opened in Chicago in 2023.
“Our team at Rutgers is breeding trees resistant to the fungal disease Eastern Filbert Blight, which severely limits the production of hazelnuts in New Jersey and throughout the East Coast,” said Thomas Molnar, Associate Professor in the Rutgers University School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. “With Ferrero’s generous support, our program is helping to unlock hazelnut production in eastern North America while providing a means to combat this disease if it spreads to new regions of the world.”
