Nutella Is Releasing a New Version of Its Beloved Spread — Minus One Ingredient

That delicious jar of Nutella is about to look a whole lot more appealing to vegans. 

This year, Fererro, the maker of Nutella, confirmed it's moving forward with plans to offer a vegan version of its famous hazelnut spread. And if you thought it was vegan this entire time, you'd be sorely mistaken. As the product's ingredients list states, it's made with seven ingredients: sugar, milk, palm oil, cocoa, hazelnuts, lecithin (an emulsifier), and vanillin. But now, a new version will be made sans the milk additive. 

"At Ferrero, we are always scouting and exploring new categories and emerging food trends," the company shared in a statement with Plant Based News. "By leveraging innovative spirit and decades of expertise of our beloved global brands, we are now preparing to launch Nutella Plant-Based … starting in autumn 2024. This further addition to the Nutella family will deliver the same unmistakable experience, replacing milk with vegetal ingredients, offering a delicious new choice able to welcome even more people into the brand." 

However, there is a major caveat. The company only plans to roll out the product to select European markets, including its home nation of Italy — at least for now. But, as EuroNews reported, Italy is a fantastic place to start as more and more of its residents identify as "flexitarians" who are trying to reduce their consumption of animal products. 

The plan for plant-based Nutella has been in the works for some time. As multiple outlets reported, the parent company registered the trademark for the name "Nutella Plant Based" back in December 2023 in both Italy and Germany, hinting at which other nation it will be rolling out to first. 

This new product also fits in rather well with Europe's growing plant-based market, which is now valued at more than €680 million ($736 million). 

Giorgio Santambrogio, CEO of retail and distribution giant Gruppo VèGè, also confirmed the news of the new product in a LinkedIn post, noting it's "tradition" for his company to be the "first retail group to be informed of Ferrero's innovation." He added, "It surely won't convince everyone, but it certainly cannot be said that Ferrero is not in keeping up with the times: in a market where demand for plant-based products is becoming increasingly high, a giant like Nutella will certainly create a lot of competition, pushing other companies to focus on the sector and perfect their products."