Springtime conjures up images associated with the season of specialty chocolate bunnies, Easter chocolate eggs, and more. Easter is coming on March 31, 2013 (except for those who belong to the Eastern Orthodox Church and celebrate it on May 5, 2013). Image of chocolate eggs courtesy of gesinek at rgbstock.com. As Lent ends, often consumers look at engaging in some type of chocolate indulgence. Those of the Jewish faith in the USA who celebrate Passover from sunset on March 25, 2013 through April 2, 2013 may also consider a Kosher chocolate indulgence as well. If chocolate has been properly stored,
Category: Cocoa
Demystifying Chocolate and Cacao Part 3 of 3
In Part 1 of this blog series we provided some background on chocolate and cacao including some cultural information surrounding the growing of theobroma cacao trees around the world and processing cacao beans from grower through manufacturer. In our Part 2 of 3 blog post we discussed some of the best known varieties of cacao trees, as well as some of the flavor notes associated with beans grown in different places in the world. Choco pieces courtesy of lusi via rgbstock.com. In this blog post, we’ll provide some infotainment regarding perceptions of “chocolate cravings” and a bit about flavor sprays,
Tips To Honor 40th National Nutrition Month
It’s March once again and National Nutrition Month (NNM) is here! National Nutrition Month helps remind us of the unmistakable link between food, nutrition and health. You can find out more by visiting this year’s NNM site. In honor of the 40th anniversary of National Nutrition Month, we’d like to share 10 categories of tips with you. Won’t you join us in making this the best celebration ever of NNM?!
Demystifying Chocolate and Cacao Part 2 of 3
In Part 1 of this blog series we provided some background on the highly successful, inextricable link between chocolate and Valentine’s Day. We also mentioned some cultural information surrounding the growing of theobroma cacao trees around the world. Finally we included some steps involved in processing cacao beans from grower through manufacturer. Image courtesy of albion80 at rgbstock.com Three of the best known categories of cacao beans that may make their way into chocolate worldwide include: Criollo which means “native” and this type of cacao bean may be found in Central America, and then in Venezuela in South America and some
Demystifying Chocolate and Cacao Part 1 of 3
Chocolate, pink or red hearts, pink or red roses, and angels or cupids–what do they all have in common? Their association with none other than Valentine’s Day! Once again, Valentine’s Day is upon us and we thought it might be an appropriate time to talk a little bit about chocolate. US marketers are delighted that chocolate and Valentine’s Day have been successfully and inextricably linked for so many decades now. In 2012, the National Confectioners Association reported that ~70+ percent of candy sales associated with Valentine’s Day were specifically just for chocolate. It is a retail category where last minute