Italian Chocolate Tycoon Ferrero dies in South Africa at 48

Posted by: Noob Blogger in Featured, Rambling Apr 19, 2011 0 653 Views

Italian Chocolate Tycoon Ferrero dies in South Africa at 48 – Italian chocolate tycoon Pietro Ferrero, joint chief executive of the group that owns Nutella and Ferrero Rocher, has died in a biking accident in South Africa, a company spokesman said Monday.

Ferrero, who was 47, fell from his bicycle during a regular riding session, probably because he was taken ill, while on a business trip in South Africa, the spokesman told AFP, voicing the group’s “deep dismay.”

Ferrero had co-run the sweets company with his younger brother Giovanni since 1997.

Their 85-year-old father Michele, who turned the firm into a global leader of the confectionery industry after taking over in 1957, is still the chairman.

Company he owns:

Nutella
Ferrero Rocher

7-year old Pietro Ferrero, who was joint chief executive of the Ferrero group with his brother Giovanni, died in an accident in Cape Town, South Africa on Monday. The news was released in a statement by a group spokesperson. The spokesperson said that he had been in South Africa on a business trip but did not reveal any more details about the accident. However it appears that Pietro died in a biking accident after falling from his bike due to a suspected heart attack. Pietro was married with three children.

Italian Chocolate Tycoon Ferrero dies in South Africa at 48

Pietro’s father, 85 year old Michele is Italy’s richest man according to Forbes magazine’s latest ranking ahead of eyewear tycoon Leonardo Del Vecchio and Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. He was responsible for turning the company into a global confectionery leader. The Ferrero group is completely family-owned and also owns the Nutella, Kinder and Tic-Tac brands. It had an annual turnover of â‚¬6.6bn in its 2009-2010 financial year, has 18 plants around the world and employs more than 21 000 people. Last year, it expressed interest in bidding for Britain’s Cadbury, which was eventually bought by Kraft Foods.

Italy’s Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said in a statement “Italy has lost a businessman who represented the best qualities of our economic history.”

In February this year, another Italian Chief Executive, Gianpaolo Ravazzotti of tile company Italtile, died in a plane crash in South Africa with eight of his business partners and colleagues.