Where is Ghirardelli Chocolate Made 2024 – Is It in USA?

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Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is a prominent American confectionery company. The company was established in 1852, which makes this company one of the third oldest chocolate companies in the United States.

Let’s discover where this vintage chocolate company manufactures its chocolate in 2024.

Lindt & Sprungli manufactures Ghirardelli chocolate in San Leandro.

Where is Ghirardelli Chocolate Made

It is a bay city in California. In 1967, the company began producing chocolate in this city, and before that, the company’s factory was in Ghirardelli Square, San Francisco.

Anyways, the headquarters of Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is still in San Francisco.

Is Ghirardelli made in the USA?

The answer is yes. Ghirardelli is an American company, and its chocolate is only produced in the United States Californian city, San Leandro.

Besides the factory in California, there is no other production facility of this company in the country or worldwide. So, there is no way that Ghirardelli is made outside the country. If you get one made outside the USA, you might pick fake Ghirardelli chocolate.

Related Read: Where is Godiva Chocolate Made

Is all Ghirardelli Chocolate made in San Francisco?

The answer is no. In 2022, Ghirardelli Chocolate Company does not manufacture chocolate in San Francisco. However, its headquarter is in San Francisco’s Ghirardelli Square.

Anyways, Since the beginning of Ghirardelli Chocolate Company in 1852, it had been manufacturing its chocolate in San Francisco. In 1967, the company shifted its factory to San Leandro.

And the Golden Grain Macaroni Company was the one that shifted Ghirardelli to San Leandro, California. This action separated the company’s headquarters from its production facility.

Who manufactures Ghirardelli Chocolate?

As of 2022, Lindt & Sprungli is the manufacturer of Ghirardelli chocolate. The company has been manufacturing this brand’s chocolate since 1998.

Lindt & Sprungli is a Switzerlandian company. In 1836, Rudolf Sprungli Ammann’s son David Sprungli Ammann bought a confectionery and manufactured solidified chocolate in Zurich.

In 1945, David turned its little confectionery into a company and named it Lindt & Sprungli. Currently, this company’s base is in Kilchberg, Horgen, Switzerland.

Where does Ghirardelli source its chocolate?

Ghirardelli is very selective when accepting cocoa for the production of chocolate. About 40 percent of the total lot gets rejected in the cocoa selection process for production. And it has specific companies from which it takes cocoa.

After 2019, Ghirardelli’s 85 percent cocoa beans will come from the farming program of Lindt & Sprungli. However, before that, the company collected its raw cocoa from cocoa farmers from various countries, including

  • Dominican Republic
  • Ecuador
  • Papua New Guinea
  • Madagascar

How many Ghirardelli factories are there?

As of 2022, Ghirardelli Chocolate Company has 25 working sites. And more than a thousand workers and employees work for this company.

However, 95 percent of the total chocolate production of Ghirardelli happens in San Leandro, California, United States. But the company did not produce its chocolate in the San Leandro factory from the beginning. Before the 1960s, its factory was in Ghirardelli, San Francisco.

How much does Ghirardelli chocolate cost?

In terms of quality control, Ghirardelli has earned quite a reputation. Due to its small raw cocoa acceptance rate, its production is limited. Thus, chocolate of Ghirardelli has turned into a luxury grade and makes its price higher than other chocolates.

The price of chocolate depends on its quality and brand name. Ghirardelli chocolate has several categories, and every type has different pricing. 9.04 ounces of milk chocolate caramel of Ghirardelli costs 4.30 dollars.

Ghirardelli’s 4.12 ounces pack of 86 percent cocoa dark chocolate takes 12.49 dollars to buy. Intense dark chocolate 3.5 ounces packet is 9.47 dollars. Besides these types, Ghirardelli provides some other types of chocolates at similar price points.

Where can I buy Ghirardelli chocolate?

Unlike other chocolate companies, Ghirardelli’s supply chain is limited to North American countries, including the United States and Canada. You will find this chocolate in Canada’s Toronto, Calgary, Montreal, Edmonton, etc.

Besides, in the United States, Ghirardelli chocolate is not available in many states. The states where you will find this company’s chocolate, including

  • California
  • San Francisco
  • Montana
  • New Mexico

Moreover, some online platforms have Ghirardelli chocolates available that are directly connected to the company. The websites are listed below to see at a glance:

  • Amazon
  • Walmart
  • Ghirardelli (Official)
  • Target
  • CVS

What company owns Ghirardelli?

Ghirardelli is a private subsidiary company. Its parent company is Lindt & Sprungli, a Switzerlandian company. In 1998, the parent company owned this chocolate company with a hundred percent share.

Anyways, Ghirardelli’s ownership has been changed several times over the years. Before Lindt and Sprungli became the owner, the chocolate company was under an investment group named John J. Anton.

Ghirardelli Chocolate Company was independent till 1963. After that, it turned into a subsidiary brand. The companies that had ownership over Ghirardelli before Lindt and Sprungli are given below:

  • Golden Grain Macaroni Company (From 1963 to 1986)
  • Quaker Oats (From 1986 to 1992)
  • John J. Anton Investment Firm (From 1992 to 1998)
  • Lindt & Sprungli (From 1998 to the present)

Is Ghirardelli ethically sourced?

Ghirardelli has a bad reputation for using millions of child laborers in countries like Ghana to farm cocoa beans. Moreover, the company is paying them low to profit more and more.

However, Ghirardelli is trying to get out of this horrifying farming process. Its goal is to produce cocoa cleanly by 2025.

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