Hershey to divest premium companies Scharffen Berger and Dagoba

Scharffen Berger was founded in 1997 by winemaker John Scharffenberger and physician Robert Steinberg and was one of the pioneers of the ­bean-to-bar movement in the US and worldwide. Uunder the leadership of current CEO Paul Cherrie, who previously held global management positions at Concord Confections and The Topps Co, Scharffen Berger is now returning to private ownership. Cherrie will be supported by a team of proven chocolate experts such as Ray Major, Wade Latz and Peter Lord, who bring a lot of operational experience to Hershey, as well as CFO Chris Spirko, who previously worked in finance at Mars. Founder John Scharffenberger has also rejoined the team.

In 2005, Hershey acquired the company and added the luxury chocolatiers Dagoba Organic Chocolate (2006), and Joseph Schmidt (2008) to its newly estblished Gourmet Chocolate business unit. In 2009, the Scharffen Berger and Joseph Schmidt manufactories were closed, and ­production was moved to the Hershey factory in Ashland. As Hershey CEO Michele Buck told at an analyst meeting, the premium brands would no longer fit into the strategy to build as strong global chocolate and snacks group.