Sweet 60 2022: The top candy companies in North America (2024)

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered cookies/wafers, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, nut candies, nougat, hard candies/mints, chewy candies, jelly beans, gum, energy/snack bars

Headquarters

Chicago, IL

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$20,000

Chief Officer

Andrew Clarke,
Global President

Employees

34,000

Plants

52

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered cookies/wafers, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, nougat, hard candies, chewy/gummy candies, licorice, chocolate drinks, gum, sugar-reduced candies, snack bars

Headquarters

Chicago, IL

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$13,063

Chief Officer

Dirk Van de Put,
CEO

Employees

79,000 ^*

Plants

133 ^*

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered cookies/pretzels, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, toffee, nut candies/barks, hard candies/lollipops/mints, licorice, gummy/jelly/chewy candies, licorice, jelly beans, syrups, cocoa powder, gum, sugar-reduced candies, snack bars

Headquarters

Hershey, PA

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$9,958

Chief Officer

Michele Buck, Chairwoman,
President & CEO

Employees

19,000

Plants

15

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered cookies/pretzels, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, hard candies/mints/lollipops, chewy/gummy/jelly candies, fruit snacks, interactive/novelty candies, spreads, gum, sugar-reduced candies, snack bars

Headquarters

Ferrero N. America, Parsippany, N.J. Ferrara, Chicago, IL

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$4,292 ²

Chief Officer

Ferrero N. America, Todd Siwak, president & CBO;
Ferrara, Marco Capurso, CEO

Employees

15,500 (Ferrero N. Amer., 9,500; Ferrara, 6,000)

Plants

14 (Ferrero N. Amer., 4; Ferrara, 10)

Products

Fruit snacks, fruit roll-ups, cereal/protein bars

Headquarters

Minneapolis, Minn

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$2,000

Chief Officer

Jeffrey Harmening, chairman & CEO

Employees

35,000^*1

Plants

47 ^*

Products

Chocolate bars, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, toffee, nut candies/bark/bars, hard candies, chewy candies, marshmallow, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Lindt & Sprungli (North America) Inc., [Ghirardelli, San Leandro, Calif., Russell Stover, Kansas City, Mo., Lindt & Sprungli (USA), Stratham, N.H.]

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$2,102

Chief Officer

Rolf Fallegger, country responsibility

Employees

4,800

Plants

5

Products

Cereal/snack/protein bars

Headquarters

Battle Creek, Mich.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$1,350

Chief Officer

Steven Cahillane,
CEO & chairman

Employees

31,000 ^*

Plants

26^*

Products

Chocolate-covered cookies, filled chocolates, caramel, nut candies, chocolate powders/shakes, sugar-reduced candies, protein/energy bars

Headquarters

Denver, Colo.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$1,151

Chief Officer

Joe Scalzo,
president & CEO

Employees

263

Plants

n/a

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered cookies, pretzels, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, toffee, nut candies, nougat, marzipan, hard candies, lollipops, gummy/chewy/jelly candies, licorice, jelly beans, fudge, marshmallow, interactive/novelty candies, yogurt-covered candies, chocolate popcorn, gum, sugar-reduced candies, cereal bars

Headquarters

Carle Place, N.Y.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$810

Chief Officer

Chris McCann, CEO

Employees

3,300 yearly;
10,000 seasonally

Plants

4

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered biscuits/wafers/cookies, panned chocolates, hard candies, fruit snacks/roll-ups, gummy/jelly candies, yogurt candies, sugar-reduced candies, fruit bars, snack/nutrition bars

Headquarters

Park Ridge, N.J.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$750

Chief Officer

Michael Rosenberg,
president & CEO

Employees

800

Plants

4

Products

Chocolate bars, cereal bars

Headquarters

Downers Grove, Ill.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$661

Chief Officer

Chuck Metzger, CEO;
Richard Scalise, chairman

Employees

2,680

Plants

14

Products

Nut candies/brittles/snacks, hard candy/mints, gummy/jelly/chewy candies, licorice, jelly beans, fruit snacks, marshmallow, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

El Paso, Texas

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$588

Chief Officer

Enrique Grajeda,
president & CEO

Employees

3,800

Plants

6

Products

Chocolate mints, filled chocolates, hard candies/lollipops, gum drops, interactive/novelty candies, gum

Headquarters

Chicago, Ill.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$566

Chief Officer

Ellen Gordon,
CEO & chairwoman

Employees

2,200

Plants

8

Products

Candy bars, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, toffees, nut candies, marzipan, nougat, hard candies/lollipops, chewy/gummy candies/jelly beans, novelty/interactive candies, marshmallows, gum, sugar-reduced candies, snack bars

Headquarters

Mexico City, Mexico

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$539

Chief Officer

Fernando Lerdo de Tejada
Servitje, president

Employees

5,764

Plants

4

Products

Caramels, gummy/jelly candies, jelly beans, hard candies/lollipops, gum, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

San Luis Potosi, Mexico

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$486

Chief Officer

Roberto Garcia Corripio,
President

Employees

2,700

Plants

3

Products

Chocolate-covered cookies, chocolate-flavored drinks, snack/cereal bars

Headquarters

Purchase, N.Y.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$450

Chief Officer

Ramon Laguarta,
chairman & CEO

Employees

250,000^*

Plants

n/a

Products

Filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, toffee, nut candies/brittles, marzipan, nougat, hard candies, lollipops, gummy/jelly/chewy candies, licorice, jelly beans, fudge, marshmallow, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

S. San Francisco, Calif.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$430

Chief Officer

Pat Egan,
president & CEO

Employees

2,500 yearly; 6,000 seasonally

Plants

3

Products

Chocolate bars, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, toffee, marzipan, nougat, hard candies/lollipops, gummy/jelly/chewy candies, marshmallow, gum, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$429

Chief Officer

Miguel Angel Michel Velasco,
president

Employees

3,180

Plants

3

Products

Moulded chocolates, lollipops/hard candies, chewy/gummy candies, interactive/novelty candies, gum, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

New York, New York

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$297

Chief Officer

Tony Jacobs,
president of Bazooka Candy Brands

Employees

200

Plants

1

Products

Chocolate bars, chewy candies, jelly beans, marshmallow

Headquarters

Bethlehem, Pa.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$282

Chief Officer

David Shaffer, chairman;
David Yale, president & COO

Employees

600

Plants

2

Products

Filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, nut candies, lollipops, gummy candies, jelly beans, mellocremes, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Fairfield, Calif.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$195

Chief Officer

Lisa Brasher,
president & CEO

Employees

720

Plants

3

Products

Chocolate bars, filled chocolates, caramel, nut/seed candies, chewy/gummy candies, dessert toppings, yogurt-covered candies

Headquarters

Madison Heights, Mich.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$188

Chief Officer

Victor Mehren,
CEO

Employees

400

Plants

2

Products

Chocolate bars, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, caramel, nut candies, jelly beans, interactive/novelty candies

Headquarters

West Reading, Pa.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$180

Chief Officer

Richard Palmer Jr., president;
Mark Schlott, COO

Employees

850

Plants

3

Products

Chocolate bars, moulded chocolates, chewy/gummy candies, jelly beans, marshmallow, interactive/novelty candies

Headquarters

Philadelphia, Pa.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$160

Chief Officer

Stuart Selarnick, CEO

Employees

150

Plants

1

Products

Hard candies/lollipops, licorice, fruit chews, interactive/novelty candies, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

La Porte, Ind.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$150

Chief Officer

John Kretchmer,
CEO

Employees

500

Plants

2

Products

Chocolate-covered pretzels, pralines, panned chocolates, caramel, toffee, nut/seed candies, yogurt-covered candies, sugar-reduced candies, energy/functional confections

Headquarters

Skokie, Ill.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$155

Chief Officer

Rick Drehobl, CEO

Employees

600

Plants

3

Products

Nutritional bars

Headquarters

Anaheim, Calif.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$145

Chief Officer

Jean Filion,
CEO

Employees

1,400

Plants

3

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered pretzels, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, caramel, toffee, nut candies/bars/bark/brittles, ice cream toppings, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Vancouver, British Columbia

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$140

Chief Officer

Karen Flavelle, CEO;
Lawrence Eade, president

Employees

1,100

Plants

1

Products

Marshmallows

Headquarters

Elk Grove Village, Ill.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$138

Chief Officer

Don Muff,
COO & president

Employees

195

Plants

2

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered pretzels/cookies, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, toffee, nut candies/brittles, lollipops, chewy/jelly/gummy candies, licorice, cocoa, fudge, marshmallow, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Durango, Colo.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$134

Chief Officer

Rob Sarlls, president,
director & CEO

Employees

200

Plants

1

Products

Panned chocolates, chocolate drops/candy buttons, caramel, nut candies, yogurt candies, gummy candies, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Oakdale, Calif.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$128

Chief Officer

Ron Sconza,
president & CEO

Employees

200

Plants

1

Products

Candy canes/lollipops, toffee, hard candies, chewy candies, marshmallows

Headquarters

Bryan, Ohio

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$120

Chief Officer

Kirkland Vashaw,
chairman & CEO

Employees

475

Plants

1

Products

Pralines/filled chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, nut/seed candies

Headquarters

Honolulu, Hawaii

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$120

Chief Officer

Edward Schultz,
president & CEO

Employees

400

Plants

2

Products

Filled chocolates, caramel, toffee, nut candies, nougat, marshmallow, ice cream toppings

Headquarters

Ponchatoula, La.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$118

Chief Officer

Rob Nelson,
CEO

Employees

450

Plants

1

Products

Chocolate-covered pretzels, panned chocolates, caramel, toffee, nut/seed candies, gummy candies, yogurt-covered candies, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Merrillville, Ind.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$110

Chief Officer

Scott Albanese,
president

Employees

300

Plants

1

Products

Nut butter cups, refrigerated protein bars, chocolate/nut butter spreads

Headquarters

Boulder, Colo.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$102

Chief Officer

Randy Simonson,
president

Employees

24

Plants

n/a

Products

Chocolate bars, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, toffee, caramel, nut candies, lollipops, chewy candies, baking chocolate, sugar-reduced candies, snack bars

Headquarters

Quebec, Quebec

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$101

Chief Officer

Jean Leclerc,
president & CEO

Employees

1000

Plants

1

Products

Chocolate bars, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, nut candies, cocoa, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Chicago, Ill.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$100

Chief Officer

Eddie Opler,
chairman & CEO

Employees

285

Plants

1

Products

Chocolate-covered pretzels, gummy candies, fruit snacks, licorice, caramel popcorn, chocolate-drizzled popcorn, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Perham, Minn.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$88

Chief Officer

Charlie Nelson,
president & CEO

Employees

367

Plants

2

Products

Chocolate bars, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, caramel, nut candies/bark, nougat, hard candies/lozenges, fruit jellies, marshmallow, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

St. Stephen, New Brunswick

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$85

Chief Officer

Bryana Ganong,
president & CEO

Employees

370

Plants

1

Products

Chocolate-covered cookies/pretzels, truffles, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, nut candies

Headquarters

Lakewood, N.J.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$82

Chief Officer

David Grunhut,
president

Employees

450

Plants

2

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered pretzels, filled chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, nut candies/brittles, hard candies/lollipops, gummy candies, yogurt-covered candies

Headquarters

Sioux City, Iowa

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$80

Chief Officer

Marty Palmer,
president

Employees

250

Plants

2

Products

Chocolate-covered cookies, filled chocolates, nut candies, lollipops, gummy candies, jelly beans, interactive/novelty candies, gum

Headquarters

Louisville, Ky.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$80

Chief Officer

Rob Auerbach,
president & CEO

Employees

25

Plants

1

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered cookies, toffee, caramel, nut candies/brittles, fudge, hot chocolate, cocoa, candy-coated popcorn

Headquarters

Tacoma, Wash.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$75

Chief Officer

John Melin, CEO

Employees

175

Plants

1

Products

Nutritional bars

Headquarters

Chicago, Ill.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$67

Chief Officer

Daniel Salvadori, executive VP, Nutritional Products

Employees

113,000^*

Plants

n/a

Products

Chocolate bars, filled chocolates, caramel, toffee, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Boulder, Colo.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$60

Chief Officer

Timothy Moley,
founder

Employees

60

Plants

1

Products

Chocolate-covered pretzels/potato chips/cookies, panned chocolates, nut candies/brittles, yogurt-covered candies, sugar-reduced candies, energy bars

Headquarters

Camp Hill, Pa.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$55

Chief Officer

Patricia Zwergel,
president & CEO

Employees

$175

Plants

1

Products

Nut candies, gummy/chewy/jelly candies, fruit snacks, jelly beans, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Salt Lake City, Utah

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$54

Chief Officer

M. Richard Kay,
president & CEO

Employees

220

Plants

1

Products

Hard candies/lollipops, chewy/gummy candies, marshmallow, novelty/interactive candies

Headquarters

Janesville, Wisc.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$53

Chief Officer

Gary Viljoen,
CEO

Employees

200

Plants

n/a

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered cookies/pretzels, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, toffee, caramel, nut candies/bars/bark, nougat, brittle, marshmallow, chocolate powder/cocoa, sugar-reduced candies, cereal/snack bars

Headquarters

Canonsburg, Pa.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$52

Chief Officer

Bill Sarris,
president & CEO

Employees

450

Plants

3

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered cookies, hard candies/mints/lollipops, chewy/gummy candies, fruit snacks, fudge, novelty/interactive candies, gum

Headquarters

Salem, N.H

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$52

Chief Officer

Richard Alimenti,
CEO

Employees

75

Plants

3

Products

Chocolate-covered cookies/pretzels, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, toffee, nut candies/brittles, yogurt-covered candies, sponge, sugar-reduced candies, energy/snack bars

Headquarters

Chicago, Ill.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$50

Chief Officer

Craig Leva,
president

Employees

250

Plants

1

Products

Chocolate bars, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, caramel, toffee, nut candies/brittles, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Dunmore, Pa.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$50

Chief Officer

Carolyn Hawk Horter,
chairwoman

Employees

225

Plants

1

Products

Chocolate bars, chocolate-covered cookies/pretzels, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, toffee, caramel, nut candies, hard candies, lollipops, gummy/chewy/jelly candies, marshmallow, novelty, cocoa, gum, sugar-reduced candies, snack bars

Headquarters

Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$125

Chief Officer

Jarett Levan,
CEO of BBX Sweet Holdings & president and CEO of BBX Capital

Employees

1,000

Plants

2

Products

Nut bars/bark/candies, mint patties

Headquarters

St. Paul, Minn.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$45

Chief Officer

Dan Lagermeier,
president & CEO

Employees

175

Plants

1

Products

Caramel, nut candies, hard candy/mints, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Lufkin, Texas

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$43

Chief Officer

Eric Atkinson,
president

Employees

250

Plants

2

Products

Chocolate-covered pretzels, filled chocolates, moulded chocolates, panned chocolates, caramel, nut candies, jelly candies, marshmallow, yogurt-covered candies

Headquarters

Frankfort, Ind.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$40

Chief Officer

Jack Zachary,
president

Employees

350

Plants

1

Products

Lollipops, gummy/jelly candies, interactive/novelty, gum, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Akron, N.Y.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$40

Chief Officer

George Stege,
president

Employees

150

Plants

1

Products

Chocolate bars, nut candies, lollipops, taffy, sugar-reduced candies

Headquarters

Los Angeles, Calif.

Confectionery
Sale (Mil.)

$38

Chief Officer

John Brooks, Sr.,
president

Employees

200

Plants

3

60

Edward Marc Brands

^*Includes non-confectionery items

¹Includes part-time or temporary workers

²Ferrero North America, sales $1.7 billion; Ferrara, sales $2.592 billion.

Sales in red were given in their respective currency and were converted to the U.S. dollar. Exchange rates from Google's exchange calculator which is based on Morningstar for currency and Coinbase for Cryptocurrency