Chocolate Food of the Gods

1. Chocolate Food of the Gods Ms. Hoffman & Mr. Ross-Ibarra September 20, 2004

2. History of Chocolate Chocolate begins with a bean ... a cacao bean. It has been mashed and eaten for centuries. The history of chocolate spans from 200 B.C. to the present, encompassing many nations and peoples of our world. The scientific name of the cacao tree's fruit is "Theobroma Cacao" which means "food of the gods." In fact, the cacao bean was worshipped as an idol by the Mayan Indians over 2,000 years ago. In 1519, Hernando Cortez tasted "Cacahuatt," a drink enjoyed by Montezuma II, the last Aztec emperor. Cortez observed that the Aztecs treated cacao beans, used to make the drink, as priceless treasures. He subsequently brought the beans back to Spain where the chocolate drink was made and then heated with added sweeteners. Its formula was kept a secret to be enjoyed by nobility. Eventually, the secret was revealed and the drink's fame spread to other lands.

3. History of Chocolate By the mid-1600s, the chocolate drink had gained widespread popularity in France. One enterprising Frenchman opened the first hot chocolate shop in London. By the 1700s, chocolate houses were as prominent as coffee houses in England. The New World's first chocolate factory opened in 1765 in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Sixty years later, Conrad Van Houten, a Dutch chemist, invented a cocoa press that enabled confectioners to make chocolate candy by mixing cocoa butter with finely ground sugar. In 1876, Daniel Peter, a Swiss candymaker, developed milk chocolate by adding condensed milk to chocolate liquor - the nonalcoholic by-product of the cocoa bean's inner meat. The Swiss also gave the chocolate a smoother texture through a process called "conching." The name was derived from a Greek term meaning "sea shell" and refered to the shape of old mixing vats where particles in the chocolate mixture were reduced to a fine texture.

5. Milton Hershey

6. Milton Hershey The food products that bear Milton S. Hershey's name represent an ongoing dedication to quality and value -- a commitment established by Hershey Foods' unique founder. In the early 1900s, Milton Hershey made one of the great American fortunes through dogged persistence and the courage to pursue a dream. Though he was modest and unassuming in appearance, Mr. Hershey was a shrewd and determined businessman. He had a genius for timing and an instinctive ability to choose loyal and able people to help him. The early years of Milton Hershey instilled in him the value of hard work. He was born on September 13, 1857, in a farmhouse near the Central Pennsylvania village of Derry Church. He was a descendant of people who had come to Pennsylvania from Switzerland and Germany in the 1700s. Raised as a Mennonite, he attended school only through the fourth grade before his father, Henry Hershey, put him to work as a printer's apprentice in Gap, PA.

7. Knowledge and Foresight Mr. Hershey became fascinated with German chocolate-making machinery on exhibit at the Chicago International Exposition in 1893. He bought the equipment for his Lancaster plant and soon began producing his own chocolate coatings for caramels. In early 1894, the Hershey Chocolate Company was born as a subsidiary of his Lancaster caramel business. In addition to chocolate coatings, Mr. Hershey made breakfast cocoa, sweet chocolate and baking chocolate. In 1900, Mr. Hershey sold the Lancaster Caramel Company for $1 million. However, he retained the chocolate manufacturing equipment and the rights to manufacture chocolate, believing a large market existed for affordable confections that could be mass produced. He proceeded to prove his case.

8. Knowledge and Foresight He returned to his birthplace, Derry Church, and located his chocolate manufacturing operation in the heart of Pennsylvania's dairy country, where he could obtain the large supplies of fresh milk needed to make fine milk chocolate. In 1903, with the money he received for his caramel business, he began to build what is now the world's largest chocolate manufacturing plant. It opened in 1905, and Mr. Hershey's great contribution to the American food industry had begun -- the mass production of milk chocolate. Milton Hershey's employees were manufacturing and selling products which would become American traditions. The chocolate business continued to thrive under Mr. Hershey's guidance, as did the community he established around it. A bank, department store, school, park, churches, golf courses, zoo, and even a trolley system (to bring in workers from nearby towns) were all built in rapid succession. Although the town was well established by its 10th anniversary in 1913, Mr. Hershey started a second building boom in the 1930s. During the Depression, he kept men at work constructing a grand hotel, a community building, a sports arena, and a new office building for the chocolate factory.

9. Hershey's Virtual Tour Welcome to Hershey, Pennsylvania, home of the world's largest chocolate factory. This is where Hershey makes its famous chocolate, but it really starts in the tropics.

10. Born in the Jungle All around the world, from Brazil to Indonesia to the Ivory Coast and Ghana, deep in the tropical jungle there grows a very special tree�the cacao tree. Cacao trees grow melon-like fruit, which is harvested by hand. Inside each pod are about 20-40 seeds, or cocoa beans. It's these beans that give chocolate its special flavor. After the beans are removed from the pods, they are placed in large heaps or piles. This is called fermentation, and takes about a week. During this time, the shells harden, the beans darken, and the rich cocoa flavor develops. After drying, the beans are ready for transport to the chocolate factory.

11. Cacao

12. Liquid Chocolate Railroad cars carry the cocoa beans from the docks to the chocolate factory where they are cleaned and stored. Cocoa beans from different countries each have a distinct flavor. After arriving at the factory, the beans are stored by country of origin until they are blended to give them that special Hershey taste. Cocoa beans are roasted in large, revolving roasters at very high temperatures. A special hulling machine then takes the dry, roasted cocoa beans and separates the shell from the inside of the bean - called the "nib." This is the part of the bean actually used to make chocolate. The nibs now are ready for milling. Milling is a grinding process which turns the nibs into a liquid called chocolate liquor - a smooth, dark stream of pure chocolate flavor which, by the way, contains no alcohol. Now it is ready for the rest of the ingredients!

13. Mixing it Up The main ingredients in chocolate are the chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, sugar and milk. Hershey uses fresh, whole milk to make its milk chocolate. It's been that way since Milton Hershey developed the recipe in 1900. Tanker trucks bring the fresh milk to the factory every day where it is tested, pasteurized, and then mixed with sugar. The whole milk-sugar mixture is slowly dried until it turns into a thick, taffy-like material. At the heart of the chocolate factory is the central blending operation where the chocolate liquor is combined with the milk and sugar. This new mixture is dried into a coarse, brown powder called chocolate crumb.

14. Perfecting the Product The chocolate crumb powder is used to make milk chocolate. Hershey adds cocoa butter to the crumb which brings out the rich taste and creamy texture of the chocolate. The crumb travels through special steel rollers which grind and refine the mixture, making it smoother. The crumb becomes a thick liquid called chocolate paste. The paste is poured into huge vats called conches. Once inside the conche, large granite rollers smooth out the gritty particles from the crumb. This process can take anywhere from 24 to 72 hours to complete. Now the chocolate paste has the smooth, familiar look of milk chocolate and it's ready to be made into our favorite Hershey's products. The paste is tempered, or cooled in a controlled manner to the right texture and consistency. Other ingredients, like almonds or peanuts, can be mixed into the paste during tempering or added directly to the moulds.

15. Perfecting the Product

16. Chocolate Bars and Hershey's Kisses Most chocolate bars are made by pouring the liquid chocolate paste into moulds. The moulding machines can fill more than 1,000 moulds per minute with delicious Hershey's chocolate. The filled moulds then take a bumpy, vibrating ride to remove air bubbles and allow the chocolate to settle evenly. Finally, they wind their way through a long cooling tunnel where the liquid chocolate is gently chilled into a solid candy bar. Now it's ready to wrap� fresh, delicious, Hershey's chocolate. While a lot of Hershey's chocolate products are poured into moulds, Hershey's Kisses are made a little differently. Special machines drop a precise amount of chocolate onto a moving steel belt and then quickly cool it to form the famous Hershey's Kiss shape. Hershey makes more than 80 million Kiss-shaped products every day at its chocolate factories in Hershey and California.

17. Fresh From the Factory As America's leading chocolate manufacturer, Hershey produces more than a billion pounds of chocolate products each year. A sophisticated, computerized distribution system makes sure that fresh products arrive at retail outlets across the country. Although the name Hershey means "chocolate" to most people, Hershey produces a lot of other famous products like Reese's peanut butter cups, York peppermint patties, Mounds and Almond Joy, Twizzlers, Payday, and Jolly Rancher. They are all part of the growing family of chocolate and candy products produced and distributed by Hershey. Thanks for visiting the world's largest chocolate factory. Come visit us if you can here in Chocolate Town USA. So long!

19. Profile of Hershey Foods Corporation: Hershey Foods Corporation is the leading North American manufacturer of quality chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery and chocolate-related grocery products, and has a variety of international operations.Principal brands include: Almond Joy and Mounds candy bars, Cadbury Creme Eggs candy, Hershey's Cookies 'n' Creme candy bar, Hershey's milk chocolate and milk chocolate with almonds bars, Hershey's Nuggets chocolates, Hershey's Kisses and Hershey's Hugs chocolates, Jolly Rancher candy, Kit Kat wafer bar, Milk Duds candy, PayDay peanut caramel bar, Reese's crunchy cookie cups, Reese's NutRageous candy bar, Reese's peanut butter cups, Sweet Escapes candy bars, TasteTations candy, Twizzlers candy, Whoppers malted milk balls, and York peppermint patties. Grocery products include Hershey's baking chocolate, Hershey's chocolate drink, Hershey's chocolate milk mix, Hershey's Chocolate Shoppe ice cream toppings, Hershey's cocoa, Hershey's syrup, Hershey's Hot Cocoa Collection hot cocoa mix, Reese's peanut butter, and Hershey's, Reese's and Heath baking pieces. Internationally, the company exports Hershey's branded confectionery and grocery products to over 90 countries worldwide. Operations of Hershey Foods Corporation are concentrated in two divisions: Hershey Chocolate North America is the nation's leading domestic producer of chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery products, as well as chocolate-related grocery products. Hershey International oversees the corporation's international interests and exports to over 90 countries worldwide

20. Myths and Truths about Candy MYTH:Candy contributes to a large percentage of the fat and sugar in the American diet. TRUTH:In fact, less than two percent of the fat and ten percent of the sugar in our diets are supplied by candy. Most of the fat actually comes from the high-fat animal products we eat. The main sources of sugar in America's diets are sugary beverages, baked goods and frozen desserts._ MYTH:Foods high in saturated fats raise cholesterol levels. TRUTH:Contrary to popular belief, not all types of saturated fats raise blood cholesterol levels. Stearic acid, the primary saturated fatty acid found in chocolate, has been shown to have a neutral effect on blood cholesterol levels.

21. Myths and Truths about Candy MYTH:An ounce of milk chocolate contains about as much caffeine as a cup of coffee. TRUTH:Actually, a one-ounce piece of milk chocolate contains about the same amount of caffeine as a cup of decaffeinated coffee. There is an average of 6 mg. of caffeine in both an ounce of milk chocolate and a cup of decaf, while a cup of regular coffee contains between 150 and 655 mg. of caffeine._ MYTH:The sugar in candy causes hyperactivity in children. TRUTH:Sugar does not cause hyperactivity in children, despite wide-spread belief to the contrary. Recent studies conducted at Vanderbilt University and the University of Iowa College of Medicine found no evidence that sugar has an adverse effect on children's behavior._ MYTH:Candies like jelly beans, gum drops or hard candies are high in calories. TRUTH:Not at all. One butterscotch disc has only 20 calories. Eight gum drops or eight jelly beans (the equivalent of one ounce) contain 115 calories. Even better, most of these candies are fat- and cholesterol-free, making them a healthier treat than many people realize.

22. Myths and Truths about Candy MYTH:Chocolate is addictive. TRUTH:Although it's true that many people love the taste of chocolate, it is not an addictive food. An addiction is a serious medical condition with specific physical and psychological symptoms. However, the desire for sweet tasting food is a strong biological drive, and it can be satisfied by eating any naturally sweet food or product made with sugar._ MYTH:Candy is responsible for most tooth decay. TRUTH:Not so. Any food containing fermentable carbohydrates, such as starches or sugars, can contribute to tooth decay. It all depends on how often we eat and drink these foods and how long they remain in our mouths. Good dental hygiene and regular fluoride treatments are the best ways to prevent cavities.

23. Theobromine Theobromine is a methylxanthine, in the same class of compounds as caffeine and theophylline. Theobromine and the other methylxanthines occur naturally in many plants found throughout the world. Examples include cocoa, tea and coffee plants. Theobromine is the predominant methylxanthine found in cocoa beans. Theophylline is the predominant methylxanthine in tea. Caffeine is the predominant methylxanthine in coffee. Hershey does not add theobromine to its chocolate products. Rather, theobromine occurs naturally in cocoa beans and is present in all chocolate products. The amount of theobromine in the finished product depends on the type of chocolate used and the serving size. Milk chocolate contains less theobromine than semi-sweet or dark chocolate. Theobromine has a mild diuretic action (increases urine production) similar to caffeine, but does not stimulate the central nervous system like caffeine. Currently there are no theobromine-free chocolate products available to consumers.

24. Effect on domestic animals: In domestic animals, especially dogs, chocolate may harm the heart, kidneys and central nervous system. This is because dogs metabolize theobromine, a naturally occurring substance in chocolate, very slowly. The effect of theobromine on dogs and some other pets is serious. It carries the same risk as does a dog's consumption of other common household items such as coffee, tea, cola beverages and certain houseplants.

25. Standards of Identity In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has established Standards of Identity for all chocolate and cocoa products. These standards designate the percentage of key ingredients that must be present. Following are the definitions for some well-known chocolate and cocoa products:

26. Standards of Identity Milk ChocolateA combination of chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, sugar and milk or cream. Milk chocolate must contain at least 10% chocolate liquor and at least 12% total milk ingredients. Sweet ChocolateA combination of chocolate liquor, cocoa butter and sugar, but contains at least 15% chocolate liquor. Semisweet Or Bittersweet ChocolateA combination of chocolate liquor, cocoa butter and sugar, but contains at least 35% chocolate liquor. Sweet chocolate and semisweet chocolate are often called dark chocolate. Chocolate, Unsweetened Chocolate, Or Baking ChocolateChocolate or chocolate liquor is produced by grinding cocoa beans smooth, liquid state. This chocolate can be sold as unsweetened chocolate or baking chocolate or used to make other chocolate types such as milk chocolate, sweet chocolate, or semisweet chocolate. White ChocolateMade from the same ingredients as milk chocolate (cocoa butter, milk, sugar) but without the nonfat cocoa solids. In 2002, FDA established a standard of identity for white chocolate. White chocolate must contain at least 20% cocoa butter and 14% total milk ingredients. CocoaCocoa is the product prepared by removing part of the fat (cocoa butter) from the cocoa beans and grinding the remaining material. �