Who owns KitKat (United States)?
KitKat (United States) is made and sold by Hershey (the United States, NYSE: HSY) under licence; Hershey does not own the name.[1] The KitKat name is owned by Nestlé.
Key facts
- Licensed to
- The Hershey Company verified
- Since
- Not recorded
- Headquarters
- 🇺🇸 United States, Hershey, Pennsylvania
- Origin
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- Founded
- 1935
- Category
- Food › Confectionery › Chocolate
- Parent ticker
- NYSE: HSY
- Last verified
- · 1 sources
About KitKat (United States)
Hershey makes and sells KitKat in the United States under a perpetual licence it inherited in 1970 from an agreement with Rowntree. Nestlé owns the brand everywhere else. The American bars are made to a different recipe, which is why imported British KitKats taste noticeably different.
Ownership timeline of KitKat (United States)
Where KitKat (United States) sits in Hershey
Controlling ownership as of . Brands grouped under the entity that owns them; large groups are collapsed.
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Other brands handled by Hershey in food
Latest news about KitKat (United States)
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Frequently asked questions
Who makes KitKat (United States)?
Hershey makes and sells KitKat (United States) under a licensing agreement.
Does Hershey own KitKat (United States)?
No. Hershey holds a licence to make and sell KitKat (United States), which is not the same as owning it.
Where did KitKat (United States) come from?
KitKat (United States) originated in the United Kingdom in 1935.
Sources (1) & corrections
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.
- [1] The Hershey Company Annual Report on Form 10-K filed 2026-02-17 — SEC EDGAR, SEC Form 10-K, published 17 February 2026; retrieved 16 September 2026.
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