Michele Ferrero, Italy's richest man and owner of Nutella, dead at 89

MONTE CARLO, Italy, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- The billionaire owner of Ferrero, Michele Ferrero, has died in his home in Italy at the age of 89. Ferrero produces Nutella, Ferrero Rocher and other sweets.

Ferrero was not in charge of running the company anymore, but he had a significant impact on the success of the company during his time running it. He was largely responsible for the worldwide success of the Nutella spread.

Nutella can be found in 53 countries, and the company has over 34,000 employees.

Ferrero was the richest man in Italy, with a net worth of over $23 billion. He was the 30th richest man in the world.

Ferrero inherited the company from his father, Pietro Ferrero, and let his son of the same name run it until his untimely death at the age of 47. The company has been run by his other son, Giovanni Ferrero, since 2011.