Bertolli
| Company type | Brand |
|---|---|
| Industry | Food products |
| Founded | 1865 in Lucca, Tuscany, Italy |
| Founder | Francesco Bertolli, Caterina Bertolli |
Area served | Global |
| Products | Extra virgin olive oil, pasta sauces, frozen meals |
| Owner | Mizkan Holdings |
| Website | www |
Bertolli represents a line of Italian food products manufactured by various companies around the globe, with the brand name owned by the Japanese multinational corporation Mizkan Holdings. Initially recognized for its extra virgin olive oil, where it once held a leading global position, the brand has since expanded to include pasta sauces and ready meal offerings.
History
The company was established in by Francesco and Caterina Bertolli in Lucca, located in the Tuscany region. At its inception, the business focused on selling wine, cheese, olives, and olive oil.
The Bertolli family retained ownership until 1972 when Alimont (a division of Montedison Group) purchased the company. Subsequently, Alimont transformed into Alivar and was acquired by Società Meridionale di Elettricità (SME), a state-owned Italian conglomerate. SME restructured Bertolli into Cirio Bertolli De Rica.
In 1994, Unilever took over Bertolli from Fisvi, a financial entity that had gained control of Cirio Bertolli De Rica during SME’s dissolution.
Unilever divested the olive oil segment in 2008 to Grupo SOS (currently Grupo Deoleo), Spain’s second-largest food corporation, for £500 million. This transaction included Italian brands such as Maya, Dante, San Giorgio, alongside the Inveruno production facility in Lombardy.
In August 2012, Unilever transferred ownership of the frozen food division under the Bertolli brand to ConAgra Foods.
On 22 May 2014, Unilever sold its North American pasta sauce operations under both Ragú and Bertolli brands to Mizkan Holdings for US$2.15 billion. Mizkan acquired the Bertolli brand and trademark rights while licensing them back to ConAgra, Deoleo, and Unilever at that time.
Following Unilever’s spin-off of its spreads division into Upfield (now Flora Food Group) in 2018, the Bertolli spreads business and associated license were assigned to that company.
In 2021, Unilever divested its European pasta sauce and mayonnaise operations under the Bertolli brand and license to Enrico-Glasbest, a food manufacturer based in the Netherlands.
Products
Bertolli offers frozen meals categorized as "Meals for One," "Meals for Two," and "Dessert." After experiencing a decline in sales during 2014, ConAgra shifted focus in 2015 toward expanding private-label products marketed under retailers’ own branding. In 2015, Bertolli commanded a 7.2% share of the pasta sauce market, ranking behind competitors such as Ragú and Prego.
Lawsuit
A 2010 study conducted by the University of California, Davis identified Bertolli Extra Virgin Olive Oil as incorrectly labeled as "extra virgin." In 2018, parent company Deoleo resolved a class action lawsuit with a US$7 million settlement over accusations of misleading consumers regarding Bertolli olive oil. The lawsuit alleged that the "Imported from Italy" label was deceptive because the oils originated from olives cultivated and pressed in countries including Greece, Chile, Spain, Australia, Turkey, and Tunisia before being blended and bottled in Italy.
In response, Deoleo removed the "Imported from Italy" wording unless oils were sourced entirely from Italian-grown olives. The complaint also criticized Bertolli’s use of transparent bottles for insufficient protection against sunlight and temperature fluctuations that could degrade oil quality before purchase.
As part of the settlement agreement, Deoleo implemented new measures to guarantee "extra virgin" standards at retail:
- Adoption of dark green bottles to minimize photooxidation
- Introduction of more rigorous quality testing procedures
- Inclusion of olive harvest dates on packaging
- Reduction of the “Best by” shelf life
On 15 November 2018, Deoleo obtained an injunction against Natural Solutions Magazine to prevent dissemination of false information concerning Bertolli and its related brand Carapelli.