billion. The deal was finalized in March 2018, and the newly acquired brands were folded into the operations of the Ferrara Candy Company. Recipe change Ferrero reformulated the Butterfinger in January 2019, with labels displaying "Improved Recipe". "Better" Butterfinger, as it is identified in advertising, uses larger runner peanuts in the bar's core that are roasted at the manufacturing plant. The new bar also uses a higher percentage of cocoa and milk in the chocolately coating and cuts ingredients such as the preservative TBHQ and hydrogenated oils. The packaging itself has also been upgraded to avoid spoilage. Representatives of the brand claimed that sales had "improved with the new recipe, specifically after posting a double-digit sales decline prior to the brand revamp." Some social media users have criticized the new recipe. Advertising campaigns Beginning in 1988, Butterfinger was advertised with The Simpsons, including the advertisement "The Butterfinger Group", which notably featured the debut of Simpsons character Milhouse Van Houten. The Simpsons was immediately popular and boosted the candy's popularity. In 1992, the Simpsons began to appear in Butterfinger BB's commercials. The Simpsons-Butterfinger marketing was phased out by 2001 but brought back in 2010. Butterfinger campaigns include counting down the end of the world or BARmageddon, with evidence such as the first-ever, QR shaped crop circle in Kansas, a Butterfinger comedy-horror movie called “Butterfinger the 13th,” the first interactive digital graphic novel by a candy brand starring the Butterfinger Defense League, and several attention-grabbing April Fool's Day pranks, including the renaming of the candy bar to “The Finger.” On April 1, 2008, Nestlé launched an April Fool's Day prank in which they claimed that they had changed the name of the candy bar to "The Finger", citing consumer research that indicated that the original brand was "clumsy" and "awkward". The prank included a fake website promoting the change that featured a video press release. When the joke was revealed, the website redirected visitors to the fictitious "Butterfinger Comedy Network". In 2009, a new advertisement for Butterfinger was produced that appeared to be a homage to the earlier The Simpsons commercials. In February 2010, Butterfinger revived its "Nobody better lay a finger..." slogan as "Nobody's gonna lay a finger on my Butterfinger." A comedy horror film entitled Butterfinger The 13th was made to promote the product in October 2011. In April 2013, an official announcement via the Twitter account of The Simpsons