I covered the subject of the nut spread known as Nutella a while back. The paste is popular with cyclists but loaded with calories. It’s pretty Euro too and as such it was the first topic in my series of about “Eurofoods”, the food products you’ll find in Europe which have a link to the sport. A family owned business giant, when looking for information I discovered that the Chairman and co-CEO, Pietro Ferrero, was a keen cyclist.
But sad news in that he died yesterday in a cycling accident in South Africa. He was on business but took a break from corporate dealings to get a ride in, heading along the coast near Cape Town, only to succumb to a heart attack. I heard the news yesterday on the radio but didn’t realise it was whilst on the bike until a helpful reader alerted me.
I don’t much about his cycling, whether he followed racing or just dabbled with a bike but the business was an interesting one. Michele Ferrero was a real life Willy Wonka, starting from a bakery in post war Italy and growing so fast that within a few years, only the Italian military had more vehicles than Ferrero’s delivery fleet. From there a confectionery giant grew but apparently still very much a quirky family business.
See the full piece on Nutella.
Ferrero makes Esta Te, the official softdrink of the Giro d’Italia for many, many years, along with many other food products. When it’s your time to go, doing so while riding a bike for me is preferably to a lot of other ways. RIP Pietro.
Obviously a guy that lived life to the fullest. RIP