Not Nestle Or Hershey: This Company Dominates Candy Sales

When you think of the most popular candy brands in America, Hershey and Nestlé are bound to spring into your mind. It's true these brands have been around for ages, each boasting over a century in the candy business. However, a newer candy maker's impressive sales have given it the edge over these industry titans. According to Statista, Mondelēz International, a major company and owner of several well-known brands, beat out Mars, Ferrero, Nestlé, and Hershey with a whopping $36 billion in sales in 2025. Once dubbed the most popular chocolate in the world, Cadbury is easily Mondelēz International's most notable chocolate brand (and here are some more sweet facts about the iconic candy company).

Mondelēz owns several other candy brands as well, including Sour Patch Kids and Toblerone. The latter appeared in our ranking of the best inexpensive candy bars along with Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate and Hu Simple Dark Chocolate 70% Cocoa (also owned by Mondelēz). Mondelēz first came onto the scene in 2012, but the company actually has a lengthy pedigree in the food manufacturing industry. A few of its founders include John Cadbury, James L. Kraft, and Carl Russ-Suchard, who's credited with creating the German-based Milka brand in 1901. Along with candy, Mondelēz also makes Oreo cookies, Ritz crackers, Clif bars, Honey Maid graham crackers, and Philadelphia cream cheese.

Mondelēz candy brands can be found in over 150 countries, and the company has expressed a commitment to crafting a variety of quality snacks using wholesome ingredients and sustainable practices. In fact, it considers sustainability to be an important facet of its success and growth, along with values like inclusivity, customer service, and environmental stewardship. Despite these lofty goals, it hasn't been all smooth sailing for the conglomerate, which has had its share of controversies and scandals over the years. In 2024, Mondelēz incurred a massive $336 million fine from the European Commission for restricting sales and distributions in different countries to drive up the prices of its products. Mondelēz minimized its involvement in the scandal by blaming the anticompetition practices on third-party brokers not affiliated with the company directly.

Mondelēz was also named in a class action lawsuit involving child labor in Côte d'Ivoire, West Africa. The suit alleges that Mondelēz knowingly purchased cocoa from farms using child labor but continued to advertise its goods as being sustainable and beneficial to farming operations and their surrounding communities. It's worth noting that Hershey, Nestlé, and Mars were also named in this class action suit. These missteps didn't have much of an impact based on Mondelēz recent sales figures, but they are an important factor to consider if you like your cand to come with a side of ethics and integrity.