I, Nutella: No one knows how to make the Nutella

Another example of simple product, the Nutella, the international brand name of a hazelnut chocolate spread, that depends on the complex chain of international division of labor.

In a latest study, the OECD uses the Nutella as an example of global value chains.

And in the tradition of Leonardo Read’s classic I, the Pencil, where “not a single person on the face of this earth knows how to make” the pencil, the same applies to the Nutella

From the Atlantic: (hat tip Scott Lincicome)

Some 250,000 tons of Nutella are now sold across 75 countries around the world every year, according to the OECD. But that’s not what’s amazing about it. Nutella, it turns out, is a perfect example of what globalization has meant for popular foodstuffs: Not only is it sold everywhere, but its ingredients are sourced from all over the place too.

Even though Ferrero International, which makes the stuff, is headquartered in Italy, it has factories in Europe, Russia, North America and South America. And while certain inputs are supplied locally—like, say, the plastic for the bottles or milk—many others are shipped from all over the world. The hazelnuts are from Turkey; the palm oil is from Malaysia; the cocoa is from Nigeria; the sugar is from either Brazil or Europe; and the vanilla flavoring is from France.

The OECD mapped it all out. Have a look: