chocolateWe eat them on any part of the day. It comes in many forms we’re all familiar with, from m&ms to peanut butter cups, bonbons to bunnies. Chocolates and its derivatives have garnered legions of fans from kids to those kids at heart. At the center of this big industry is a magic bean believed to be an energizer and an aphrodisiac food.

Chocolate manufacturing plants in America usually produce $16 billion worth of chocolates per year. This looks too much but is just enough for how much chocolate an ordinary person eat in a year. According to studies, an ordinary American citizen consumes 12lbs of chocolate in a year, 16lbs if you have a sweet tooth.

A chocolate start its life as a seed, particularly as a bean that comes from the cacao tree. It primarily grows 10 degrees north or south of the equator. Farmers harvest the tree twice a year.  Inside those pods is where the bitterly tasted beans of cacao are found. They are fermented to let the bitterness subside and to let the aroma and flavour set in. The less moisture it has, the better chance of avoiding the growth of mold. Sacks full of cacao beans are then shipped to large manufacturing industries. An example of a big industry that manufactures chocolates is Guittard Chocolates and Mars, the maker of our favorite M&Ms.

Watch the documentary below from the History Channel to know the general idea on how chocolates are manufactured and created.

Unfortunately the original documentary “Chocolate – Modern Marvels” isn’t available any more, but we recommend to watch the following documentery film:

The Great American Choclate Factory

National Geographic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lP1_746b6ZM