Chocolate

Chocolate is a processed, typically sweetened food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico and Central America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC by the Olmecs in south central Mexico. The majority of the Mesoamerican people made chocolate beverages, including the Mayans and the Aztecs, who made it into a beverage known as xocoltl [okolat], a Nahuatl word meaning "bitter water". The seeds of the cacao tree have an intense bitter taste, and must be fermented to develop the flavor.
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After fermentation, the beans are dried, then cleaned, and then roasted, and the shell is removed to produce cacao nibs. The nibs are then ground to cocoa mass, pure chocolate in rough form. Because this cocoa mass usually is liquefied then molded with or without other ingredients, it is called chocolate liquor. The liquor also may be processed into two components: cocoa solids and cocoa butter. Unsweetened baking chocolate (bitter chocolate) contains primarily cocoa solids and cocoa butter in varying proportions. Much of the chocolate consumed today is in the form of sweet chocolate, a combination of cocoa solids, cocoa butter or other fat, and sugar. Milk chocolate is sweet chocolate that additionally contains milk powder or condensed milk. White chocolate contains cocoa butter, sugar, and milk but no cocoa solids. Cocoa solids contain alkaloids such as theobromine, phenethylamine and caffeine. These have physiological effects on the body and are linked to serotonin levels in the brain. Some research has found that chocolate, eaten in [3] moderation, can lower blood pressure. The presence of theobromine renders chocolate toxic to some [4] animals, especially dogs and cats. The Europeans sweetened and fattened chocolate by adding refined sugar and milk, two ingredients unknown to the Mexicans. In the 19th century, Briton John Cadbury developed an emulsification process to make solid chocolate, creating the modern chocolate bar. Chocolate has become one of the most popular food types and flavors in the world, and a vast number of foodstuffs involving chocolate have been created. Chocolate chip cookies have become very common, and very popular, in most parts of Europe and North America. Gifts of chocolate molded into different shapes have become traditional on certain holidays. Chocolate is also used in cold and hot beverages, to produce chocolate milk and hot chocolate. Although cocoa is originally from the Americas, today Western Africa produces almost two-thirds of the world's cocoa, with Cte d'Ivoire growing almost half of it.
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Mesoamerica history
Chocolate has been used as a drink for nearly all of its history. The earliest record of using chocolate dates from the [10] time of the Olmecs. In November 2007, archaeologists reported finding evidence of the oldest known cultivation and [11] use of cacao in Central America at a site in Puerto Escondido, Honduras, dating from about 1100 to 1400 BC. The residues found and the kind of vessel they were found in indicate the initial use of cacao was not simply as a beverage, but the white pulp around the cacao beans was likely used as a source of fermentable sugars for an [11] [12] alcoholic drink. The Maya civilization grew cacao trees in their backyards, and used the cacao seeds the trees [13] produced to make a frothy, bitter drink. Documents in Maya hieroglyphs stated chocolate was used for ceremonial [14] purposes, in addition to everyday life. The chocolate residue found in an early ancient Maya pot in Ro Azul, Guatemala, suggests the Maya were drinking chocolate around 400 AD.

Types
Several types of chocolate can be distinguished. Pure, unsweetened chocolate contains primarily cocoa solids and cocoa butter in varying proportions. Much of the chocolate consumed today is in the form of sweet chocolate, combining chocolate with sugar. Milk chocolate is sweet chocolate that additionally contains milk powder or condensed milk. In the U.K. and Ireland, milk chocolate must contain a minimum of 20% total dry cocoa solids; in the [37] rest of the European Union, the minimum is 25%. "White chocolate" contains cocoa butter, sugar, and milk, but no cocoa solids. Chocolate contains alkaloids such as theobromine and phenethylamine, which have some physiological [38] effects in humans, but the presence of theobromine renders it toxic to some animals, such as dogs and cats. It has [39] been linked to serotonin levels in the brain. Dark chocolate has been promoted for unproven health benefits, as it seems to possess substantial amount of antioxidants that reduce the formation of free radicals.

Production
Roughly two-thirds of the entire world's cocoa is produced in West Africa, with 43% sourced from Cte [43] [44][45][46] d'Ivoire, where child labor is a common practice to obtain the product. According to the World Cocoa [47] Foundation, some 50 million people around the world depend on cocoa as a source of livelihood. In the UK, most [48] chocolatiers purchase their chocolate from them, to melt, mold and package to their own design. Chocolate is any product made primarily of cocoa solids and cocoa butter. Production costs can be decreased by reducing cocoa solid content or by substituting cocoa butter with another fat. Cocoa growers object to allowing the resulting food to be called "chocolate", due to the risk of lower demand for their [47] [49] crops. The sequencing in 2010 of genome of the cacao tree may allow yields to be improved.

There are two main jobs associated with creating chocolate candy, chocolate makers and chocolatiers. Chocolate makers use harvested cacao beans and other ingredients to produce couverture chocolate (covering). Chocolatiers use the finished couverture to make chocolate candies (bars, truffles, etc.)

Processing
Cacao pods are harvested by cutting the pods from the tree using a machete, or by knocking them off the tree using a stick. The beans with their surrounding pulp are removed from the pods and placed in piles or bins, allowing access to microorganisms so that fermentation of the pectin-containing material can begin. Yeast produce ethanol, lactic acid bacteria produce lactic acid and acetic acid bacteria produce acetic acid. The fermentation process, which takes up to [57] seven days, also produces several flavor precursors, eventually resulting in the familiar chocolate taste. It is important to harvest the pods when they are fully ripe because if the pod is unripe, the beans will have a low cocoa butter content, or there will be insufficient sugars in the white pulp for fermentation, resulting in a weak flavor. After fermentation, the beans must be quickly dried to prevent mold growth. Climate and weather permitting, this is [58] done by spreading the beans out in the sun from five to seven days. The dried beans are then transported to a chocolate manufacturing facility. The beans are cleaned (removing twigs, stones, and other debris), roasted, and graded. Next, the shell of each bean is removed to extract the nib. Finally, the [59] nibs are ground and liquefied, resulting in pure chocolate in fluid form: chocolate liquor. The liquor can be further processed into two components: cocoa solids and cocoa butter.

Health effects
Positive Cocoa or dark chocolate may positively affect the circulatory system. Several studies have suggested that eating chocolate can help reduce the risk of [74][75][76] [74] certaincardiovascular problems and also reduce blood pressure in both overweight and normal adults. [77] Chocolate may boost cognitive abilities. [78] Dark chocolate may lower cholesterol levels in adults. Although basic research has provided preliminary [79] evidence that polyphenols in chocolate might inhibit oxidation of LDL cholesterol, few results from clinical [80][81] trials are conclusive about such an effect in humans. [82] According to one study, chocolate consumption correlates with lower Body Mass Index. Other possible effects under basic research include anticancer, brain stimulator, cough [83] preventor and antidiarrhoeal activities. Negative Chocolate is believed to cause heartburn because of one of its constituents, theobromine, relaxes the oesophageal sphinctermuscle, hence permitting stomach acidic contents to enter into [84] the oesophagus. Theobromine is also toxic to many animals because they are unable to metabolize it [4] (see theobromine poisoning). The unconstrained consumption of large quantities of any energy-rich food, such as chocolate, without a corresponding increase in activity, is thought to increase the risk of obesity. Raw chocolate is high in cocoa butter, a fat which is removed during chocolate refining, then added back in varying proportions during the manufacturing process. Manufacturers may add other fats, sugars, and milk as well, all of which increase the caloric content of chocolate.
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Manufacturers
The Hershey Company, known for their Hershey bar, Hershey's Kisses and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, is the [101] largest chocolate manufacturer in North America. Mars Incorporated, one of the largest privately owned U.S. corporations, is a worldwide manufacturer of confectionery and other food products, with US$21 billion in annual sales in 2006. Mars is known for Mars Bar, Milky Way, M&M's, Twix and Snickers, as well as other confectionery items, such as Skittles. Food conglomerates Nestl SA and Kraft Foods both have chocolate brands. Nestl acquired Rowntree's in 1988 and now market chocolates under their own brand, including Smarties and Kit Kat; Kraft Foods through its 1990 acquisition of Jacobs Suchard, now own Milka and Suchard. In February 2010, Kraft also acquired British-based Cadbury plc, the [102] world's largest confectionery manufacturer. Cadbury is well known for its Dairy Milk range and Creme Egg; Fry's, Trebor Basset, the fair-trade brand Green & Black's also belong to the group.