Ferrero Rocher ( , , ; stylized in all caps) is a brand of chocolate and hazelnut confectionery manufactured by the Italian company Ferrero SpA. Created by Michele Ferrero in 1979, each Ferrero Rocher ball is covered in foil and placed into a paper liner. The confection is machine-made and much of its production process is kept secret.
History
Ferrero Rocher was introduced in 1979 in Italy and in other parts of Europe in 1982.
Michele Ferrero, the credited inventor, named the chocolate after a
grotto in the
Roman Catholic shrine of
Lourdes, .
comes from
French language and means 'rock' or '
boulder'.
Ingredients
The chocolate consists of a whole roasted
hazelnut encased in a thin
wafer shell filled with hazelnut chocolate and covered in milk chocolate and chopped hazelnuts.
Its ingredients are milk chocolate,
sugar,
cocoa butter,
Chocolate liquor, skim
Powdered milk,
Clarified butter,
lecithin as
Emulsion (soy),
vanillin (artificial flavor), hazelnuts,
palm oil,
wheat flour,
whey (milk), low fat
Cocoa solids, sodium bicarbonate (leavening agent), and
salt.
Production
The production process is a secret, and no smartphones or notebooks are allowed inside the production facilities. As of 2015, few journalists have ever been invited to visit.
As of 2015, the production in the Alba factory totals 24 million Ferrero Rochers a day.
The mechanised production process begins with flat sheets of wafer with hemispheres moving down an assembly line.
Cultural impact
Christmas
Ferrero Rochers are associated with the holiday season during Christmas and New Year. As of 2015, 62% of Ferrero Rochers were sold within the last three months of the year.
1990s advertisement
The brand is known in the United Kingdom, and other countries such as Mexico, by the popular 1990s 'ambassadors' advertisement.
It was based upon a party in a European ambassador's official residence, with the chocolates arranged into a pyramid and portrayed as a sophisticated treat. The advertisement has been repeatedly parodied in popular culture since.
In 2000, the ambassador's party commercial was ranked 21st in Channel 4's poll of "The 100 Greatest TV Ads".
Immigrant communities
Ferrero Rocher is popular among immigrant communities in the United States due to its relatively low price compared with other
, along with its upscale appearance and marketing. Before Ferrero Rocher was available in mainland China, it was a popular gift from people in
Hong Kong, who nicknamed Rocher "gold sand", to people on the mainland around Chinese New Year.
Knockoffs and counterfeits
In 2017, police made several arrests and seized 300,000 pieces of counterfeit Rocher which had been produced in a factory in
Wuhu.
Ferrero had spent USD $1 million and five years fighting Chinese firm Montresor, whose "Tresor Dore" chocolates were priced at one-third of the cost of the genuine Rocher; an April 2008 court ruling had previously ordered Montresor to cease production.
See also
-
Environmental impact of cocoa production
-
Gianduiotto
-
Gianduja (chocolate)
External links
