Ferrero Rocher billionaire heiress who did not like chocolate dies aged 87 as Italian PM Giorgia Meloni pays tribute
The billionaire heiress of the Ferrero Rocher empire, who ironically didn’t like chocolate, has died aged 87.
Maria Franca Ferrera passed away at her home in Alba, in Italy‘s Piedmont region, on Thursday.
She was the widow of Michele Ferrero, owner of the Ferrero Group – the company behind Nutella, Kinder and Ferrero Rocher, among other confectionery brands.
When Michele -Italy’s richest man at the time – died in 2015, Maria inherited a business spanning around 40 factories, more than 47,000 employees and an annual turnover exceeding £15.7billion.
She is survived by her son Giovanni, the current chairman of the group, her daughters-in-law Paola and Luisa, and five grandchildren.
Her other son, Pietro, died in 2011 from a sudden illness.
Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni paid tribute to Maria, saying: ‘With her passing, Italy loses a figure who embodied – with elegance and quiet dignity – a model of enterprise that creates value while never losing sight of the community.’
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni paid tribute: ‘With her passing, Italy loses a figure who embodied – with elegance and quiet dignity – a model of enterprise that creates value while never losing sight of the community.’
Pictured: Maria Franca Ferrera and her son Giovanni Ferrero during the funeral of Michele Ferrero on February 18, 2015
Maria was born in Savigliano on 21 January 1939.
After finishing school, she attended an interpreters’ college in Milan and, in 1961, was hired as a translator and interpreter at Ferrero, where she met her husband.
It was love at first sight and the couple married in 1962 – even though, as she later recalled, ‘I didn’t like chocolate’.
A year later, their firstborn Pietro was born, followed by Giovanni in 1964.
Her discreet philanthropic work earned her several honours, including the title of Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic – the country’s highest-ranking honour – in 2024.
On 19 December, she was unanimously appointed honorary life president of the Ferrero Group at an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting.
