Inventor of Nutella died | Het Nieuwsblad

Rivella started his career in 1952 at Ferrero, the Italian chocolate and confectionery company. At that time he was 25 and had just obtained his chemistry diploma. Rivella went to work in the “chemical room” of Ferrero, where some of the most iconic creations of the brand emerged, and was part of the team responsible for studying raw materials to develop new products. Something that happened by mixing, refining and tasting ingredients in search of the “perfect taste”.

Rivella finally made it a senior manager at Ferrero and served for a while as Michele Ferrero’s right hand, who had taken over the company founded in 1946 from his father Pietro.

The first version of what would be Nutella was originally called “Giandujot”, derived from “Gianduja”, a candy made of chocolate and hazelnuts, and Kouwein 1946 on the market. “The sweet pasta from the first recipe was formed into a bread that could be cut into slices and could be lubricated on bread, named after a local carnival player,” read on the Nutella website. In 1951 the pasta was “transformed into a creamy, new product that was easier to smear”. It was called “Supercrema”.

It would take even more than ten years before the recipe (by Rivella) was improved, which in 1964 led to the creation of the very first pot of hazelnut-cacaocrème. According to the website, Nutella consists of seven ingredients: sugar, palm oil, hazelnuts, milk, cocoa, lecithin and vanillin. Through his work, Rivella was called “the father of Nutella”. As technical director at Ferrero, Rivella was also at the cradle of Mon Chéri and Kinder-Chocolade.

After his retirement, the man devoted himself to fruit growing and the Italian sport ‘Pallapugno’. Rivella died on Valentine’s Day, day by day ten years after Michele Ferrero. Rivella leaves a daughter and three sons.