Butterfinger
An American candy-bar brand built around a crisp, layered peanut-butter center and a chocolate-like coating.
Last updated August 21, 2026
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Overview
Butterfinger is an American candy-bar brand owned by Ferrero and manufactured in the United States by Ferrara Candy Company, a Ferrero subsidiary. Its signature product combines a layered, brittle-textured peanut-butter center with a sweet chocolate-like coating. The brand is associated primarily with the United States, although it has had periods of international distribution and withdrawal from some markets. The bar was created in 1923 by Otto Schnering, founder of the Curtiss Candy Company near Chicago. Its name was selected through a public contest, an early example of consumer participation in the naming of a packaged-food product. Curtiss promoted the new candy aggressively, including publicity stunts in which Butterfinger and Baby Ruth bars were dropped from airplanes over American cities. The product also received early entertainment exposure through a 1934 appearance in the Shirley Temple film Baby Take a Bow. Butterfinger changed corporate hands several times. Standard Brands acquired Curtiss in 1964, and Standard Brands later merged with Nabisco. Following the creation of RJR Nabisco and its highly publicized leveraged buyout, Nestlé acquired Butterfinger and Baby Ruth from RJR Nabisco in 1990. Nestlé subsequently managed the brand for nearly three decades and expanded its advertising, product variants, and retail presence. The brand's most recognizable modern marketing association is The Simpsons. Butterfinger advertising featuring Bart Simpson and the line "Nobody better lay a finger on my Butterfinger" began in 1988, when The Simpsons was still appearing as shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show. The campaign helped connect the bar with a younger audience and became one of the better-known entertainment partnerships in confectionery advertising. The association was reduced after 2001, revived in 2010, and returned in later Simpsons-related activity. Nestlé sold its United States confectionery business, including Butterfinger, to Ferrero in 2018. The brand was transferred to Ferrara's operations within the Ferrero group. In 2019, Ferrero introduced a reformulated Butterfinger marketed as having an improved recipe. The changes included plant-roasted peanuts, a higher proportion of cocoa and milk in the coating, removal of ingredients such as TBHQ and hydrogenated oils, and packaging intended to improve product protection. The change generated some negative social-media commentary, but the core positioning remained unchanged. Butterfinger's portfolio has included the standard bar, bite-sized products, balls, cups, ice-cream products, baking pieces, wafers, cocoa mix, and limited-edition or discontinued variants. The brand's central proposition remains an accessible, mass-market combination of peanut butter, crisp texture, and a sweet coating rather than premium chocolate craftsmanship. In 2024, Butterfinger marked its centennial with renewed Simpsons packaging featuring Bart, Homer, and the broader Simpsons family.
History
Butterfinger originated in 1923 at the Curtiss Candy Company, a Chicago-area business founded by Otto Schnering in 1922. Schnering developed the bar around a crisp, layered peanut-butter center and a sweet coating. Rather than selecting the name internally, Curtiss held a public contest, making the final name part of the product's early publicity. The company also used highly visible promotional stunts: Butterfinger and Baby Ruth bars were dropped from airplanes over cities in the United States to attract attention and encourage trial. The brand received early popular-culture exposure in the 1934 Shirley Temple film Baby Take a Bow. Over subsequent decades, Butterfinger became part of the American mass-market candy category and was sold through common impulse-purchase channels such as convenience stores, supermarkets, and vending locations. Corporate ownership changed in the 1960s and 1980s. Standard Brands acquired Curtiss in 1964. Standard Brands later merged with Nabisco, and the resulting corporate structure eventually became part of RJR Nabisco. In December 1988, RJR Nabisco was acquired by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. In February 1990, Nestlé purchased Butterfinger and Baby Ruth from RJR Nabisco, bringing the brands into Nestlé's confectionery portfolio. A major stage in Butterfinger's brand development began in 1988, when advertising used characters from The Simpsons. The first campaign appeared while The Simpsons was still being shown as shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show. Bart Simpson became especially associated with the product, and the slogan "Nobody better lay a finger on my Butterfinger" became a durable part of its identity. Simpsons-themed advertising continued through 2001, returned in 2010, and was referenced again in later promotions. Variants such as Butterfinger BB's also used Simpsons characters in advertising. Butterfinger pursued international distribution but did not perform uniformly across markets. In Germany, the product was withdrawn in 1999 following consumer rejection and a Greenpeace campaign focused on genetically modified corn ingredients. The withdrawal illustrated the importance of local food politics and consumer attitudes to multinational confectionery distribution. During Nestlé ownership, the brand expanded beyond the standard bar. Products included BB's, bite-sized pieces, ice-cream bars, wafer-style Crisp products, peanut-butter cups, cocoa mix, baking pieces, and a caffeinated limited-release product called Butterfinger Buzz. Many of these variants were later discontinued. Mini Bites, introduced in 2009, evolved into the bite-sized segment now associated with Butterfinger Bites. In January 2018, Nestlé announced the sale of Butterfinger and more than 20 other United States confectionery brands to Ferrero for $2.8 billion. The deal closed in March 2018, and Butterfinger became part of Ferrara Candy Company's United States operations within the Ferrero group. Ferrero changed the recipe in January 2019, promoting the result as an improved recipe. The new formulation used peanuts roasted at the manufacturing plant, increased cocoa and milk in the coating, and removed TBHQ and hydrogenated oils. Packaging was also upgraded to help protect freshness. Some consumers criticized the reformulation online, making the change a notable product-generation decision even though the brand continued operating. Butterfinger remains primarily a United States brand. Its contemporary identity combines an instantly recognizable peanut-butter-and-crisp texture with humorous advertising, entertainment partnerships, seasonal formats, and relatively broad retail availability. Its 2024 centennial activity again connected the brand with The Simpsons, reinforcing a relationship that has been central to its modern recognition.
- 2024
Centennial Simpsons packaging
[1]Butterfinger marked its centennial with Simpsons-themed single, two-pack, and Fun Size packaging.
- 2019
Improved recipe launched
[1]Ferrero introduced a reformulated bar with updated ingredients, processing, and packaging.
- 2018
Ferrero acquires the brand
[1]Ferrero completed its acquisition of Butterfinger and other Nestlé United States confectionery brands.
- 2014
Butterfinger Peanut Butter Cups introduced
[1]Nestlé launched a cup-format product combining crunchy and creamy peanut butter under a milk-chocolate coating.
- 2010
Simpsons partnership revived
[1]Butterfinger revived its Simpsons-related advertising and its signature finger-protection slogan.
- 2009
Bite-sized and caffeinated variants appear
[1]Butterfinger Mini Bites and the limited Butterfinger Buzz product were introduced.
- 2001
Original Simpsons campaign phase ends
[1]The principal run of Butterfinger advertising featuring The Simpsons was phased out.
- 1999
German distribution ends
[1]Butterfinger was withdrawn from Germany amid consumer opposition and a Greenpeace campaign concerning genetically modified ingredients.
- 1992
Butterfinger BB's introduced
[1]The brand introduced marble-sized, bagged Butterfinger BB's, supported by Simpsons advertising.
- 1990
Nestlé acquires Butterfinger
[1]Nestlé bought Butterfinger and Baby Ruth from RJR Nabisco.
Products and positioning
A mass-market American confectionery brand differentiated by a crisp peanut-butter center, recognizable humor-led advertising, and broad convenience-store and grocery distribution.
Candy bar · 1923
Butterfinger Original
The core Butterfinger product is a bar made from layered crisp peanut-butter material covered in a sweet chocolate-like coating. It is the product from which the brand's texture, slogan, and most line extensions derive. The coating is described by the reference material as chocolate-like rather than chocolate because it does not contain cocoa butter.
Bite-sized confectionery · 2009
Butterfinger Bites
Butterfinger Bites are small pieces designed for bagged, snackable consumption. They developed from the brand's Mini Bites format and provide the same recognizable crisp peanut-butter center in a portion-sized shape rather than a conventional bar.
Bagged confectionery · 1992
Butterfinger BB's
Butterfinger BB's were marble-sized pieces sold in bags and promoted with The Simpsons. Their format resembled other small, rounded confectionery products and extended the brand beyond the traditional single bar.
Frozen dessert · 1991
Butterfinger Ice Cream Bar
The Butterfinger Ice Cream Bar adapts the brand into a frozen format with an ice-cream filling and Butterfinger-associated flavor cues. A related nugget-shaped frozen product was also developed, but that version was discontinued.
Peanut-butter cups · 2014
Butterfinger Peanut Butter Cups
Introduced by Nestlé in 2014, the cups used both crunchy and creamy peanut butter under a milk-chocolate coating. The product was positioned as a cup-format extension of Butterfinger's signature texture, but it was discontinued after the brand changed ownership in 2018.
Wafer bar
Butterfinger Crisp
Butterfinger Crisp was a chocolate-covered wafer product filled with Butterfinger-flavored cream. It belonged to Nestlé's broader Crisp-style line of wafer confectionery and represented a more biscuit-like interpretation of the Butterfinger flavor profile.
Caffeinated candy bar · 2009
Butterfinger Buzz
Butterfinger Buzz was a limited-distribution, king-size format containing 80 milligrams of caffeine per package. The product carried a warning for children, pregnant women, and people sensitive to caffeine and was discontinued shortly after introduction.
Baking ingredient
Butterfinger Baking Bits
Butterfinger Bits are crumbled pieces intended for baking and dessert preparation. They allow consumers to use the brand's peanut-butter and crisp flavor in homemade cookies, bars, toppings, and other recipes.
Marketing campaigns
- 2024Butterfinger 100th anniversary Simpsons packaging
United States
For its centennial, Butterfinger featured Bart and Homer on individual and two-pack wrappers and the complete Simpsons family on Fun Size packaging.
Outcome. Reinforced the brand's historic entertainment partnership during an anniversary year.
- 2013Bart Simpson campaign return
United States · Digital
An official Simpsons social-media announcement indicated that the Bart Simpson advertising campaign featuring the classic slogan would return.
Outcome. Extended the brand's long-running Simpsons platform into a later advertising cycle.
- 2013BARmageddon
United States · Digital
Butterfinger developed an end-of-the-world-themed promotion called BARmageddon, including a QR-shaped crop circle in Kansas and other attention-seeking creative elements.
Outcome. Used spectacle and digital participation to generate campaign awareness.
- 2013Butterfinger the 13th
United States · Digital
The brand promoted a comedy-horror project titled Butterfinger the 13th as part of its entertainment-oriented marketing activity.
Outcome. Expanded Butterfinger advertising into branded entertainment.
- 2013Butterfinger Defense League
United States · Digital
Butterfinger created an interactive digital graphic novel centered on a fictional Butterfinger Defense League.
Outcome. Used interactive storytelling to give the product a larger fictional world and encourage digital engagement.
- 2010Simpsons campaign revival
United States
Butterfinger brought back Simpsons-related advertising and revived a version of its classic finger-protection slogan.
Outcome. Reconnected the brand with an established advertising property and its legacy audience.
- 2008The Finger April Fool's campaign
United States · Digital
Nestlé staged an April Fool's prank claiming that Butterfinger would be renamed The Finger. A fake website and video press release supported the fictional announcement before visitors were redirected to a mock Butterfinger Comedy Network.
Outcome. Generated online attention through a deliberately temporary brand-renaming joke.
- 1988The Simpsons and Nobody better lay a finger
United States
Butterfinger used The Simpsons, particularly Bart Simpson, in commercials built around the warning that nobody should lay a finger on the bar.
Outcome. Created one of the brand's most recognizable advertising identities and strengthened youth appeal.
- 1934Baby Take a Bow film promotion
United States
Butterfinger appeared in promotional context around the Shirley Temple film Baby Take a Bow.
Outcome. Provided early mass-entertainment exposure.
- 1923Airplane candy-bar drops
United States
Curtiss promoted Butterfinger and Baby Ruth by dropping candy bars from airplanes over American cities, creating a highly visible publicity stunt for the new product.
Outcome. Helped increase early public awareness and popularity.
Brand decisions
2019
Launch the improved Butterfinger recipeGeneration changeBackground
After acquiring the brand, Ferrero sought to update the product while retaining its defining peanut-butter center and crisp texture.
Action taken
Ferrero changed the peanut-roasting process, adjusted the coating to contain more cocoa and milk, removed TBHQ and hydrogenated oils, and upgraded packaging.
Aftermath
The reformulation was promoted as an improved recipe but received criticism from some social-media users.
2018
Transfer Butterfinger from Nestlé to FerreroM&ABackground
Nestlé decided to exit its United States confectionery business and sell more than 20 brands to Ferrero.
Action taken
Ferrero acquired Butterfinger and integrated the brand into Ferrara Candy Company's United States operations.
Aftermath
Butterfinger became part of Ferrero's global confectionery portfolio while remaining primarily associated with the United States market.
Transaction value. $2.8 billion (2018 announced transaction)
1999
Withdraw Butterfinger from GermanyStrategyBackground
Consumer opposition and a Greenpeace campaign focused on genetically modified corn ingredients created resistance to Butterfinger in Germany.
Action taken
Nestlé ended Butterfinger sales in the German market.
Aftermath
Germany became an example of the brand's uneven international performance and the effect of local food-ingredient concerns on distribution.
Recent events
Ferrero brands launch children’s hospitals campaign[2]
Reported:
CRUNCH, Butterfinger and Baby Ruth launched a campaign featuring limited-edition packaging and donations from participating product sales to Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, up to $350,000.
Sources2 sources
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