Sint-Amands chocolate brand Boerinneke spreads in the hands of … (Economists)

Boerinneke, headquartered in Sint-Amands in the province of Antwerp, has been around since 1955. Today the brand is the second largest – after Nutella – in the country. The chocolate spread, owned by the Van Weyenberg family and co-owner Paul-Henry Verhelst, has a turnover of €14 million. Half of this comes from its own brand, and the rest of the sales are generated through private brands.

The buyer is the Italian company Nutkao, a global company with a turnover of 200 million euros, which is mainly active as a producer of chocolate and hazelnuts that spreads to private brands. Nutkao has offices in Italy, USA and Ghana. Belgium has now been added to this. The Italians own 100% of the shares in Boerinneke.

With the acquisition of Boerinneke, Nutkao wants to expand further into Europe. Italians want to grow in Belgium, Holland, France and Germany. Boerinneke makes a perfect bridgehead for this, according to Daniel Peters, who along with his brother Marcel will take over the Antwerp company.

The Peters brothers have a history in this sector. They previously headed the Duo Penotti brand of Dutch hazelnut spread.