Hershey's

The Hershey Trust Company holds approximately 80% of the voting power of The Hershey Company. The trust was established by Milton S. Hershey to benefit the Milton Hershey School exclusively. Voting control ensures the company's profits continue to serve the educational mission rather than short-term shareholder returns.

No. Unlike a family office serving heirs, the Hershey Trust Company exists solely to fund the Milton Hershey School. There is no family wealth transfer — the trust's single beneficiary is the school. It operates like a single-family office with an endowment mandate, where investment returns and dividends from The Hershey Company directly sustain school operations.

The trust's portfolio includes Hershey Entertainment & Resorts — which operates Hersheypark, Hotel Hershey, and the Hershey Lodge — along with significant commercial and residential real estate in Hershey, Pennsylvania. It also holds a diversified investment portfolio of public equities and fixed income to support the Milton Hershey School's operating budget and long-term endowment.

The trust primarily invests through its controlling equity stake in The Hershey Company and its wholly owned Hershey Entertainment & Resorts subsidiary. It does not actively pursue external venture or private equity fund commitments as a primary strategy. Its investment focus remains on preserving and growing assets to fund the Milton Hershey School's educational mission in perpetuity.

The Hershey Trust Company is governed by an independent board of directors that manages both the trust's fiduciary responsibilities and its role as controlling shareholder of The Hershey Company. The board includes investment, legal, and governance professionals. The Pennsylvania Attorney General's office has oversight authority over the charitable trust, adding an unusual layer of public accountability rare among single-family offices.

The Milton Hershey School is the trust's sole beneficiary. The trust was created in 1909 by Milton and Catherine Hershey explicitly to fund the school, which they had founded in 1909 as the Hershey Industrial School. The school serves over 2,200 students annually from low-income families, providing free housing, education, healthcare, and meals funded entirely by trust distributions.

There have been periods when external offers prompted debate. Most notably, in 2002, the Hershey Trust board initiated a sale process of The Hershey Company to diversify its endowment, sparking public and legal opposition. The Pennsylvania Attorney General ultimately blocked the sale, reinforcing the trust's perpetual control model. In 2016, Mondelez International made an unsolicited $23 billion bid, but Hershey's board declined, maintaining the trust-controlled structure.