The history of chocolate is filled with intrigue, political maneuvering, and innovation. From a fermented alcoholic beverage to a candy bar, chocolate’s journey has been marked by twists and turns. The industry is full of secrets, ethical controversies, and constant new developments. The story of chocolate is closely intertwined with the history of colonial expansion, the industrial revolution, and even wars. Today, the chocolate industry struggles with ethical issues such as child labor, fair working conditions, and the environment.
The story of one of the world’s most beloved foods is filled with intrigue, political maneuvering and innovation. The journey from a fermented alcoholic beverage to a candy bar in the corner store was marked by many twists and turns, and even today the world of chocolate is full of secrets, ethical controversies and constant new developments. Chocolate is a multi-billion dollar industry and it should come as no surprise to learn that the history of chocolate is closely intertwined with the history of colonial expansion, the industrial revolution, and even wars.
Most people are aware that the history of chocolate begins in South and Central America, where Native Americans have used the beans from the Theobroma cacao, or cocoa plant, for centuries. The earliest evidence of the use of chocolate for culinary purposes dates back to 1400 BC, when the Mayans apparently fermented the pulp surrounding cocoa beans to create an alcoholic drink. In the 1st century AD, the Mayans used the beans, fermenting them and then grinding them with ingredients such as cornmeal, vanilla beans, and chiles over a metate to create a tangy, bitter paste that could be churned with water to create a drink known as xocolatl. .
The xocolatl Maya would not be to the taste of most modern consumers. The Mayans drank their chocolate exclusively, mixing their ground cocoa beans with water and then pouring the drink back and forth between two cups to develop a thickly frothy drink. Chocolate was so revered in Mayan culture that it was used in religious ceremonies. Most Mayans had a cacao tree growing in their back yards, making chocolate accessible to all members of Mayan society. The wealthy, of course, had special drinking dishes for chocolate, complete with elaborate decorations that included depictions of cocoa bean growing, harvesting, and preparation.
The Mayans established a bustling chocolate trade, trading the beans with other Native American peoples who lived in regions where cacao trees could not be grown. As Aztec culture began to grow in the 12th century, the Aztecs revived the habit of drinking chocolate and it became a drink for the Aztec elite, the only ones who could afford the precious beans. In fact, cacao beans were even used as currency by the Aztecs, who would trade the beans for anything from fruit to slaves.
After Columbus traveled to the New World in 1492, he returned with a ship loaded with a variety of trade goods, including some cocoa beans, describing chocolate as a “divine drink that builds stamina and fights fatigue.” The Spanish court, however, failed to understand the value of chocolate until another conqueror, Herman Cortez, conquered the Aztec empire and established cocoa plantations, shipping the beans to Spain. In Spain, chocolate became a drink of the elite and high church officials, and Spain held a monopoly on chocolate for over 100 years.
The Spaniards were dissatisfied with chocolate as it was made in South America. They found the drink too bitter and didn’t like the frothy texture. As a result, the Spanish came up with the ingenious idea of adding sugar and cinnamon to their chocolate. They also developed a special utensil, the molinillo, for mixing chocolate. Spanish explorers expanded their holdings in South America specifically for the purpose of maintaining a monopoly on chocolate, establishing large plantations for growing cocoa and using slave labor to produce the crop.
Chocolate has remained Spain’s little secret for quite some time. Other Europeans were so unaware of the value of chocolate that when Spanish ships were attacked by English pirates, the pirates systematically destroyed shipments of cocoa beans, thinking they were worthless. While Europeans certainly realized that Spain had stumbled upon a number of treasures in the New World, it wasn’t until the 1600s that the chocolate craze hit the rest of Europe.
With a growing desire for chocolate in places like France, England and the Netherlands, the demand for chocolate production has grown. Numerous countries colonized regions that would have been suitable for cocoa production and established large plantations of cocoa, sugar, and other South American crops that could be grown by slaves and sold at an immense profit. Even with an increase in production, chocolate was still extremely expensive and its consumption was limited mainly to the elite, who consumed it in fashionable chocolate houses.
As chocolate spread across Europe, various countries created their own formulations, adding ingredients such as milk to make the drink more palatable. However, the chocolate remained firmly in liquid form, served in exotic and elaborate vessels that matched beautiful custom china for serving the chocolate.
The history of chocolate took a dramatic turn in the Industrial Revolution, when the development of mass production techniques made the once elite beverage accessible to a much larger segment of society. In 1828, inventors developed a technique for pressing cocoa beans to separate cocoa solids and cocoa butter, using a hydraulic press, and this radically changed the nature of chocolate production. Before the development of the hydraulic press, chocolate was sold in the form of a crumbly, high-fat mixture that was difficult to use and digest. With the development of printing, consumers could purchase cocoa powder, an affordable and easily manageable alternative.
However, chocolate was mostly consumed in liquid form until the 1800s because no one had managed to create an edible form of solid chocolate and chocolate chip cookies weren’t yet wildly popular. Consuming chocolate was introduced in the 1830s, and it would be a gritty, bitter affair until the 1870s, when chocolate makers finally came up with conching.
When the chocolate is concise, it is ground over hours or days to create a smooth product with a very uniform creamy texture. Conching allowed the eating chocolate market to explode, as consumers – for the first time ever – could eat quality candy bars. It also allowed chocolate companies to create a variety of chocolate coatings and sauces, enabling the production of candy bars covered in chocolate, a perennial favorite.
However, the industrialization of the chocolate industry has brought attention to its dark side. Many chocolate companies were accused of using child and slave labor on their plantations and factories, and the growing labor movement began urging reforms both at home and abroad. In response to public concerns, chocolatiers also began speaking out about the working conditions involved in chocolate production, with some companies such as Cadbury pledging to eliminate ethically unhealthy labor from chocolate production as early as 1910.
In the late 1800s, a number of manufacturers marketed their consumption of chocolate as a healthy addition to the diet, aimed particularly at mothers and children. All sorts of claims have been made about chocolate and human health, with chocolate packaging including detailed descriptions of all the benefits conferred by chocolate. The idea of chocolate as a health food was so firmly ingrained that manufacturers sold “breakfast chocolate,” eating chocolate designed to be eaten for breakfast, and chocolate was considered a vital part of rations for soldiers during the Civil War in the United States. United States.
The story of chocolate and the military continues today. Many major military conflicts have spurred unique developments in the chocolate world in an effort to produce chocolate that could be integrated into wartime rations. In World War II, for example, Mars Incorporated introduced M&Ms into American GIs, and during Gulf War I, confectioners battled to make a chocolate that wouldn’t melt in the Middle Eastern heat.
In addition to the world wars, the 20th century also saw an explosion of confectionary wars. Mars and Hershey’s in particular battled for chocolate supremacy in the United States in the 1940s, with counterparts such as Rowantree and Cadbury getting away with it overseas. Corporate espionage was such a big problem in the chocolate industry in the 1960s that it was parodied in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. In the 1980s, with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the major chocolate manufacturers saw further scope for expansion, engaging in extravagant advertising campaigns targeting the chocolate-hungry residents of Asia and Eastern Europe.
Today, two-thirds of the world’s chocolate comes from West Africa. The chocolate industry continues to struggle with ethical issues such as child labour, fair working conditions and the environment. Several chocolate companies have even been accused of manipulating national governments into finding a stable supply of chocolate, just as United Fruit in South America did with bananas. In response, products such as Certified Fair Trade chocolate have sprung up, and a number of chocolate companies have corporate responsibility programs that are designed to allay consumer fears about the source of their chocolate.
Consumers have also been struck with fear by a series of cocoa disease scare, which has periodically threatened the world’s chocolate supply. Diseases affecting cocoa plants tend to spread rapidly, decimating chocolate crops across an entire region. In addition to potentially impacting overall chocolate supplies, such diseases could have a serious impact on the flavors consumers have come to know and love. Chocolate companies each produce their own unique blends for the products they produce, and small deviations in these blends are often noted. For this reason, several producers have large experimental plantations where they work on the breeding of disease-resistant plants and the development of new strains of cocoa beans.
Candy manufacturers continue to be extremely cautious about revealing their manufacturing secrets. Many chocolate factories are closed to the public and access to the factory floor is tightly controlled, even executives admit they don’t know exactly how their products are made. Innovation in chocolate continues as well, with candy makers large and small releasing a plethora of new chocolate products every year, ranging from gourmet truffles to new candy bars. Competition between the major manufacturers is fierce, with companies battling it out to produce the next big chocolate sensation, much to the delight of many consumers.
The opening of the 21st century has also revealed new horizons in the history of chocolate, with gourmet chocolatiers creating unique and distinctive chocolate blends. Chocolate aficionados were also able to choose from a huge assortment of regionally sourced chocolates with a focus on rare and unusual beans. A number of small chocolate companies also specialize in regional treats that have become cult favorites.
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