The history of chocolate production can be traced back to the ancient Olmecs of Southern Mexico and Mayans. The Maya people were the first to discover cocoa plant back 400AD. Anthropologist found evidence that cocoa plants were first cultivated by the ancient Mesoamericans who are found in the present-day tropical rainforest of Central America. Chocolate was produced through fermentation, roasting, and grounding of cocoa beans into a paste. Different flavors of frothy chocolate drinks were then made from the paste by adding other ingredients such as honey, chili peppers, vanilla, and water. The drink was commonly known as Xocoatl, and it was most appreciated for its stimulating and invigorating effects. The Olmecs, Aztecs, and Mayans believed that the drink possessed spiritual and mystical qualities (Clarence-Smith, 2016). The Mayans reserved chocolate for warriors, nobles, rulers, and priests as well as worshiped a god of cocoa.
During the 15 th century, the first meeting of cocoa with western civilization occurred. Christopher Columbus visited the island of Guanaja in Honduras and was welcomed with a cup of chocolate. Cortes followed Columbus afterward and brought the seeds to Europe. Since then, chocolate production began in Europe as a beverage due to the frequent trading activities with the Spanish colonies in America. At first, the Spanish used the Aztecs’ recipe, but later they began adding vanilla, cinnamon, and sugar to chocolate, making the chocolate soft and sweet (Clarence-Smith, 2016). Although the Spaniards sweetened the beverage, one thing that remained unchangeable was its symbol of power, luxury, and wealth.
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The Spanish kept their production of chocolate a secret for almost a century. French King Louis XIII’s marriage to Spanish King Philip III’s daughter made the Spanish secret be known to the rest of the world. Following this discovery, the popularity of chocolate spread across Europe and was fast adopted in countries such as Belgium, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, and Germany. The masters of Florentine and Venetian introduced the art of chocolate preparation (Clarence-Smith, 2016). Other European powers used the equatorial regions around the world to establish colonial plantations and grow cocoa. The depletion of the native Mesoamerican pool and the high demand for human workforce to work on cocoa plantations and chocolate factories necessitated the European explorers to import slaves.
The invention of the cocoa press in 1828 by Coenraad Johannes, a Dutch chemist, revolutionized chocolate production. With this innovation, it became possible to squeeze the roasted cocoa beans to obtain the fatty cocoa butter. The dry cake left behind was then pulverized into fine powder and mixed with other ingredients to form a paste. The paste was solidified in molds to become the bars of edible chocolate. The adoption of the cocoa press ushered in the contemporary production of chocolate, making it a confectionary ingredient whose costs were made affordable to people all over the world.
In 1847, J.S. Fry & Sons British Company made the first edible chocolate bar, which contained butter, sugar, and cocoa powder as the primary ingredients. The invention of the conching machine by Rodolphe Lindt in 1879 bolstered the production of chocolates by imparting the velvety texture, superior taste and allowing mass production of creamy milk and smooth chocolate on assembly lines of factories (Clarence-Smith, 2016). In 1984, Voiron and Raymond Bonnat produced the dark “Grands Crus de Cacao” first collection. A tablet of 70% cocoa was sold by Lindt in Italian supermarkets by the end of 1889. From 1993 to 1995, the first Euro-chocolate edition was held in Perugia as well as salon du chocolate in Paris. The entrance of companies like Cadbury Mars, and Hershey in the late 1800s and early 1900s set the precedence for a boom in chocolate production that prevailed to date. In 1925, the first chocolate cover was produced by Callebaut and America became the leading producer of chocolate.1956 marked the birth of the first industrially produced Boer chocolate known as ‘Mon Cheri’ which paved the way for the production of the first jar of Nutella (Alberts, & Cidell, 2015).
In the contemporary world, the average Americans consume approximately 12lbs of chocolate per year, and at least 75 billion dollars is spent on chocolate globally. Although chocolate production has gained much momentum in the industry, its current use is endangering the cocoa bean itself. With the demand for chocolate growing by 3% every year, the lack of land to plant and harvest new seeds is also increasing (Alberts, & Cidell, 2015). Thus, the seeds are becoming more endangered.
References
Alberts, H. C., & Cidell, J. (2015). Chocolate consumption, manufacturing, and quality in Europe and North America. Econ Chocolate , 119 .
Clarence-Smith, W. G. (2016). Chocolate consumption from the sixteenth century to the great chocolate boom. The Economics of Chocolate , 43.
