Get rich? Start a career in food

Forget becoming a lawyer and stop studying medicine right now. Did you think you’d get richest with a job in tech? Think again. If you really want to get rich, look for a job in food.

The American business magazine Forbes publishes a list of the richest people in the world every year, and the top 50 is full of big names from the food business. Jaqueline Mars, for example, owns a third of Mars, the largest confectionery company in the world. They make that oh-so-delicious Mars bar (and Mars ice creams, hmmmm), as well as sweets such as Twix, Freedent, Bounty, Dove and M&M’s. And yes, with a third of the company, you quickly end up with 23.6 billion dollars.

A whole lot of chocolate

Another great example for chocolate lovers: Giovanni Ferrero is worth 21 billion dollars through his company that, you guessed it, makes Ferrero Rocher. But also Nutella, Kinder chocolate and even Tic Tacs. Earlier this year, the company also took over all of Nestlé’s business. Ka-ching! Don’t like chocolate? Then start your own supermarket. The heirs of the owners of budget supermarket Aldi are worth no less than 28.1 billion dollars.

Drinks

Prefer drinks? Number 29 on the list, Jorge Paulo Lemann, started out in banking but later became the majority shareholder of Anheuser-Busch InBev, the largest brewer in the world. That job has left him with 25.9 billion in the bank. The owner of Red Bull never has to worry about money again either, with his 23 million dollars in the bank.

The Netherlands

And what about Dutch prosperity? Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken, the daughter of the founder, is currently the richest Dutch person according to the Quote 500, with 12.5 billion euros. Jumbo founder Karel van Eerd is the richest person from Brabant on the same list, and the Heijn family certainly no longer needs to check what’s on special offer every week.