Chocolate Conclusion

Chocolate “Sometimes a girl’s gotta have some chocolate,” according to Carrie Underwood. Although chocolate is not just for girls, many people believe the quote is absolutely true. Chocolate is a sweet treat people often enjoy. Chocolate is known for its long history, in-depth growing, harvesting, and manufacturing process, variety of products and foods, and well-known production companies. Chocolate is believed to have been first discovered nearly 4,000 years ago by pre-Olmec cultures in what is now known as Mexico. They would brew a chocolate drink using cacao beans ground into a paste and mixed with a variety of spices, vanilla, honey, and water. It had more of a bitter taste, not the sweet chocolate people know today. Explorer Christopher

However, the top ten cocoa producing countries are Dominican Republic, Peru, Mexico, Ecuador, Brazil, Cameroon, Nigeria, Indonesia, Ghana, and Cote d’lvoire. (Mattyasovszky) A cacao tree produces pods. One cacao tree can produce close to 2,000 pods each year. Inside these pods are around 40 beans and a sticky white pulp. The pods are harvested two times a year. The next step in the harvesting process is fermentation. During fermentation, the taste begins to change. The bitterness starts to leave the beans and a more edible taste begins to develop. Fermentation length could last a few days or a couple of weeks. After fermentation, the beans are dried in the sun. During the drying process, the taste continues to develop. After the beans are dried, they are shipped to factories to be turned into chocolate. Once at the factory, cacao beans are weighed and sorted. Then, they are roasted which brings out the flavor of the beans. Next, the beans are cracked and the outer shells are blown away. What is left are the cacao nibs which are edible but still bitter. The nibs are then turned into a paste called chocolate liquor. Vanilla, milk, sugar, and cocoa butter are added to the chocolate liquor to make it sweeter. Then it is put into a conching machine that mixes everything together. The final step is tempering the chocolate stirring, cooling, and heating back up at a slow pace.

One example is Hershey’s. It is an American company founded by Milton S. Hershey in 1894 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He moved his company to Derry Township and developed a model town in which his workers could be comfortable. That model town became known as Hershey, Pennsylvania. The Hershey Company produces a variety of candy, including Hershey’s, Hershey’s with almonds, Hershey’s Kisses, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, Mounds, and Whoppers. Hershey Park is also located in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Hershey Park was developed by Milton S. Hershey as a place for his employees to use for leisure. It has grown over the years and become a major theme park for people to enjoy. While there people can enjoy amusement rides, tour a chocolate factory to learn how chocolate is made, tour a museum to learn more about Milton S. Hershey, and meet the Hershey Park characters. (Hersheypark.com) Another example of a chocolate manufacturing company is Mars. Frank C. Mars first starts his basket candies business in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1920. In 1923, he introduced the Milky Way candy bar. In 1929, the company relocated to Chicago, Illinois. In 1930, the Snickers candy bar was introduced and 3 Musketeers in 1932. Mars, Incorporated also produces non-chocolate products as well. They produce Uncle Ben’s Rice and various dog and cat foods.