Nutella, in its original form, was first created in the 1940s by Pietro Ferrero, a pastry maker and founder of the Ferrero Company in Piedmont, Italy. At the time cocoa was in short supply because of rationing due to World War II, and chocolate was very limited.
So Mr. Ferrero used hazelnuts, which are plentiful in the Piedmont region in Northwest Italy, mixed with chocolate.