Since it's Easter time, you've probably taken some time away from eating chocolate to visit the Motley Fool. I thought this might be a good opportunity to dive into the industry that is Easter chocolate. Investing doesn't have to take an Easter break, after all!
So let's dive right into the chocolate pile
Chocolate all round
So, according to a 2016 Roy Morgan survey (which is a few years old, but our chocolate habits probably don't change too much), Australians favourite chocolate brands include the following: Cadbury, Cherry Ripe, Kit Kat, Mars Bars, Snickers, Lindt, Ferrero Rocher, Freddo Frog, Crunchie, Boost, Flake, Twirl and Bounty.
Of these brands, Cherry Ripe, Freddo Frog, Crunchie, Boost, and Twirl are all owned by Cadbury. It may not come as a surprise that Cadbury dominates our local chocolate industry.
Cadbury itself is a subsidiary of the US-listed food giant Mondelez International Inc (NASDAQ: MDLZ), despite its British roots. Mondelez also owns the Toblerone and Oreo brands.
Mars Bars, Snickers, and Bounty are all owned by Mars, Incorporated. This company, also American, is one of the largest private companies in the world. So no Mars shares up for trading for us retail investors! Mars also owns the Wrigley's line of gum, as well as the Eukanuba and Pedigree brands of pet food.
Kit Kat is owned by the Swiss company Nestle SA (SWX: NESN), which is the largest food company in the world. Nestle also owns Allen's lolly range, as well as chocolates like Milky Bar, Aero, and Smarties.
Ferrero Rocher is owned by, well, Ferrero Group, who also owns Kinder Suprise, Nutella, and Raffaello. Ferrero is also a private company, but an Italian one.
And finally we have Lindt, or Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Sprüngli AG (SWX: LISN) if you want its full name. Lindt is also a publically traded Swiss company. Its famous products are arguably the Lindor balls and gold bunnies, which are a staple sight on supermarket shelves at Easter.
Foolish takeaway
Chocolate is a big business, especially at this time of year. As such, it's certainly interesting to see which companies dominate our Easter purchasing in Australia. No surprises to see the Swiss making their names felt. However, it's interesting to explore the origins of brands like Mars, Cadbury and Ferrero as well. Happy Easter!
