Originally called Grupo Nacional de Chocolates, the conglomerate very recently changed its name to Grupo Nutresa to better reflect its broadened focus on cold cuts, coffee, ice cream, cookies and pasta, in addition to chocolate.

Today with a 60% market share, Nutresa is Colombia’s leading processed food company and ranks among the Latin American food sector’s top 10 regional players. Sales hit $2.52 billion in 2010 and though this was lower than the 2009 results ($2.59 billion) – due to the devaluation of the Venezuelan currency – shareholder dividends rose by over 5%.

Aside from venturing into new foods, the 90-year-old group has also been exploring opportunities abroad. “In the last decade we’ve made over 15 investments from Peru to the U.S., going through Panama, Costa Rica and Mexico, where we have industrial operations,” says Carlos Piedrahita, president of Grupo Nutresa. “We have built a commercial web in 11 countries in the region, successfully taking our brands and products to millions of consumers and also exporting to Europe, Africa and Southeast Asia.”

Despite recent acquisitions in the U.S. and the Dominican Republic, Mr. Piedrahita, who has led Nutresa’s aggressive internationalization policies for over a decade, says that the group’s foreign sales represent just 30% of the total, a number he plans to increase if it is to become a truly global company.

Earlier this month, Nutresa broke records on the Colombian Stock Exchange, when its sale of 25 million shares was met with a demand 17 times higher. The group sought to raise $295 million, yet investors eagerly responded with offers topping $5 billion.

Other merits this year include the group’s inclusion in the SAM Group’s Sustainability Yearbook 2011, the world’s most comprehensive report regarding corporate  sustainability. Nutresa is the only Latin American food company and the first Colombian firm to be highlighted in this list.