Loacker (, ) is an Italian confectionery company based in

South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...

, specialized in the production of

wafer A wafer is a crisp, often sweet, very thin, flat, light biscuit, often used to decorate ice cream, and also used as a garnish on some sweet dishes. They frequently have a waffle surface pattern but may also be patterned with insignia of the foo ...

chocolate Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cocoa beans that can be a liquid, solid, or paste, either by itself or to flavoring, flavor other foods. Cocoa beans are the processed seeds of the cacao tree (''Theobroma cacao''); unprocesse ...

and derivative products.

History

The company was founded in 1925 in the historic city center of

Bolzano Bolzano ( ; ; or ) is the capital city of South Tyrol (officially the province of Bolzano), Northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third largest in historical Tyrol. The ...

by the Austrian confectioner Alfons Loacker. Back then, he opened a small store with two assistants in Piazza Domenicani. In 1974, Loacker moved away from the city, marking the transition from a small regional

bakery A bakery is an establishment that produces and sells flour-based baked goods made in an oven such as bread, cookies, cakes, doughnuts, bagels, Pastry, pastries, and pies. Some retail bakeries are also categorized as Coffeehouse, cafés, servi ...

to an industrial reality. Armin Loacker, Alfons' son, chose the Renon plateau in the heart of the

Dolomites The Dolomites ( ), also known as the Dolomite Mountains, Dolomite Alps or Dolomitic Alps, are a mountain range in northeastern Italy. They form part of the Southern Limestone Alps and extend from the River Adige in the west to the Piave Va ...

to produce his own wafers.

Manufacturing

Loacker nowadays has two plants, one in Auna di Sotto on the Renon and a second one in Heinfels in East Tyrol (Austria). At both production sites wafers and chocolate specialties are produced at more than 1,000 meters above sea level. Today, the third generation leads the company: Armin's sons Andreas and Martin Loacker together with his nephew Ulrich Zuenelli who works as executive chairman. As of 2021, Loacker has 1,153 employees. In 2021, 1.03 billion single pieces were produced and 35,729 tons of products were sold which amounted to net sales of €435.45 million. Italy, the United States, and Saudi Arabia were the highest-consuming countries, followed by Israel and China. In 2022, Loacker announced the initiation of a multi-year partnership with

Sammontana Sammontana is an Italian ice cream manufacturer based in Empoli, Italy founded in 1948 when brothers Renzo, Sergio and Loriano Bagnoli decided to start producing ice cream made in their father's bar for sale outside of Empoli. As of 2008, Sammo ...

for the production of a new range of Loacker-branded ice creams.

Products and ingredients

The Napolitaner (Hazelnut) flavored ranges are amongst Loacker's best-known products. The name "Napolitaner" derives from the hazelnuts which represent the main ingredient of the cream in the wafers and used to be sourced from plantations near

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

. Nowadays, Loacker has initiated four sustainability pathways for both production and sourcing of raw materials, aiming to increase verticalization of its own supply chain. In addition to the vanilla Bourbon pods from Madagascar and the cocoa beans cultivated in Ecuador and the Ivory Coast, Loacker uses milk powder from Dolomites Milk in Vandoies for its dairy creams. Dolomites Milk is a joint venture between Loacker and the South Tyrolean dairy cooperative BRIMI which comprises 1,100 local farmers. This 10,000 m² facility is the first plant which is specialized in whey and milk powder in Italy. Loacker covers part of its hazelnut supply needs through products coming from two company-owned farms located in Tuscany and orchards of 90 more farms which are part of a cultivation project with based on supply chain contracts in Veneto, Umbria, Tuscany and Marche. Furthermore, Loacker distributes products branded by

Lorenz Lorenz is an originally German name derived from the Roman surname Laurentius, which means "from Laurentum". Given name People with the given name Lorenz include: * Prince Lorenz of Belgium (born 1955), member of the Belgian royal family by h ...

, Pema,

Twinings Twinings () is a British marketeer of tea and other beverages, including coffee, hot chocolate, and malt drinks, based in Andover, Hampshire. The brand is owned by Associated British Foods. It holds the world's oldest continually used company ...

, Ovomaltine and Darbo in Italy.

Loacker Café

Besides the production and sale of its own products to both small and large distributors, the group also comprises five Loacker Cafés, all of which are located in

Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, f ...

. These Cafés represent a mix between a store, where the entire Loacker product assortment is sold, and a confectionery, where people can enjoy freshly baked goods and high-quality coffee. The Cafés are located at historically and strategically important sites to the company, including Bolzano's Piazza Walther in its historic city center, the Twenty shopping mall, the Outlet Center Brennero, Piazza Fiera in Trento and Heinfels, right next to Loacker's production site in Eastern Tyrol.

References

External links

Company website

Loacker U.S. website
* {{Commons category-inline Food and drink companies established in 1925 Manufacturing companies based in South Tyrol 1925 establishments in Italy Italian brands Confectionery companies of Italy