7 ms·

Nestle finds new way to use cocoa leftovers to sweeten chocolate

mdorazio 7y ago
As expected, this is pretty misleading. “The food company is using a patented technique to turn the white pulp that covers cocoa beans into a powder that naturally contains sugar.” They’re not adding any processed sugar, so they can make the “no added sugar” claim. They’re still adding sugar via another method.
- Finnucane 7y ago
  Yeah, it's unclear from the article what the product is actually going to be composed of. 70% dark chocolate means basically 70% cocao and 30% sugar. Is it still going to be 30% sugar? It might not be cane sugar, but it'll still be sugar.
  - pteraspidomorph 7y ago
    That's really not true. Or at least in europe, 70% chocolate contains 70% cocoa solids. The remaining 30% are mostly butter (cocoa butter or another type of fat) and can contain sugar and milk.
    - arcticbull 7y ago
      At least in the US to be called chocolate it has to be cocoa butter. Chocolate is an FDA regulated term. Hershey learned this lesson the hard way a few years back as they tried to change over to vegetable oil, IIRC. [1] Apparently in the UK it must be at least 20% cocoa solids. [1] https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/business/worldbusiness/09iht-chocolate.1.7055816.html https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/business/worldbusiness/09...
    - Finnucane 7y ago
      Generally, manufacturers include the cocao butter in the percentage of cocao solids. And only low-grade chocolates would substitute another kind of fat.
- dang 7y ago
  Ok, we've changed the title to mostly the subtitle.
- pkaye 7y ago
  Those who want no added sugar can always get the 100% dark chocolate.
  - ineedasername 7y ago
    Basically bakers chocolate. I remember finding some in the pantry as a kid. Hidden candy! Until I took a bite and the bitter crumbly taste of 100% dark hit me.
- INTPenis 7y ago
  Since it's coming from under the rind of the cocoa bean, wouldn't it be fructose then?
  - thatcat 7y ago
    They probably use enzymes to breakdown some cellulose into fructose which is sweeter tasting than glucose or convert glucose to fructose, so they could add less sugar. FTA:"... finding a way to alter the structure of sugar to boost its sweetening power" and then go on to say since it's sweeter they can use 40% less.
- p1necone 7y ago
  Reminds me of people adding date paste to health foods instead of sugar. Date paste is only sweet because it contains heaps of sugar...
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
- dTal 7y ago
  "Patented technique" sounds pretty damn processed to me. Just replace "cocoa beans" with "sugar cane" and read it again.
  - rolltiide 7y ago
    I mean if just exciting a few electrons turns a molecule into an -ose or -ase polymer, then what do you want to call it? processed sugar has a different colloquial meaning that has nothing to do with whether you found it like that on your farm I think "natural" is the best most relatable term here
    - dTal 7y ago
      Why is it more natural to extract simple sugars from cocoa beans than from sugar cane, beets, corn, or other plants? It sounds exactly the same to me.
- Dylan16807 7y ago
  > They’re not adding any processed sugar, so they can make the “no added sugar” claim. They’re still adding sugar via another method. This sugar is very much processed. The difference is that they changed the recipe to stop removing this sugar. I wouldn't call it 'added sugar'; it's like using whole milk directly instead of reducing it to 1% milk.
  - ineedasername 7y ago
    And I guess from the sound of it the current process is more like reducing to 1% milk and then adding back some fat from another source.
- kbenson 7y ago
  > They’re not adding any processed sugar, so they can make the “no added sugar” claim. They’re still adding sugar via another method. To me the "no added sugar" pretty clearly encapsulates and is understood to be in-line with what is going on here. The most common place I can think of seeing that phrase in on packaging for fruit juice drinks, and I think it's pretty clearly understood that they still have plenty of sugar, and the only thing it really denotes is whether the product is more "natural" (in a marketing sense).
- fitzroy 7y ago
  Similar to cured meat with "no added nitrates” but a bunch of added celery powder (which is high in nitrates). https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food/the-uncured-bacon-illusion-its-actually-cured-and-its-not-better-for-you/2019/04/19/0c89630c-608c-11e9-9ff2-abc984dc9eec_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food/the-uncured-ba...
yial 7y ago
It would also be nice instead of just focusing on sugar, nestle focused on not using child labor in their cocoa sourcing process. https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/business/hershey-nestle-mars-chocolate-child-labor-west-africa/?utm_term=.78337193cd00 https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/business/hershe...
- vernie 7y ago
  Wow, what a poignant paywall.
aaron695 7y ago
It's a broken world if you think this is good at base level. Sugar is mass produced and very efficent. It'll use way less energy than this 'new' method. It doesn't matter where the sugar comes from health wise, magic won't stop it giving you cancer. Unless it's is a different molecule? The cocoa leftovers has a use, such as fertilizer, turning them into hipster food doesn't do much. It might make it more a more interesting world, hipster is a hobby with as much value as most hobbies and it's less efficient, so increases consumption, which is good for economics.
antoncohen 7y ago
Cacao pulp is delicious. It is interesting that we use the bitter seeds from the fruit, and mostly throw out the tasty pulp. If you are in San Francisco you can get cacao fruit smoothies from Dandelion Chocolate. I hope the pulp starts showing up in more food products instead of going to waste.
- technothrasher 7y ago
  Traditionally the pulp is left on the beans during fermentation to impart flavor, and is basically used up in the process. It's mostly American style chocolate that removes the pulp before fermentation and throws it away, in order to... reduce flavor, I guess?
- felipemnoa 7y ago
  >>I hope the pulp starts showing up in more food products instead of going to waste. I'd be surprised if it is truly wasted. Most likely it servers some other useful purpose. Fertilizer or fuel are two uses I can think of.
jeanlucas 7y ago
Good side: nice, new ways to use that waste. Bad side: Nestlé.
- Haga 7y ago
  Microsoft of food
- atlasunshrugged 7y ago
  Serious question, why is it bad that it's Nestle?
  - Cryptokrates 7y ago
    Nestle is one of the worst companies... without getting into the details too much, many of their (business) practices are as anti-human as it gets
  - mft_ 7y ago
    I think the majority of the hatred for Nestlé comes from their aggressive approach to selling baby formula in poor countries where (for various reasons) it wasn't appropriate, which probably directly harmed children as a result. However, according to this page, there are other reasons too: https://www.zmescience.com/science/nestle-company-pollution-children/ https://www.zmescience.com/science/nestle-company-pollution-...
    - RobAley 7y ago
      "aggressive approach" - their sales reps dressed as nurses and went into hospitals. It goes a bit beyond "aggressive". "probably directly harmed children" - report after report from (respected) NGOs and the WHO concluded babies died. No "probably", beyond "harmed".
      - mft_ 7y ago
        Thanks for additional info. (I wasn't trying to downplay Nestle's crimes - more just hedge due to my own lack of certainty about the situation.)
twic 7y ago
See also cascara, the dried fruit left over from producing coffee beans: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffee_cherry_tea https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffee_cherry_tea
55555 7y ago
Have they really been throwing it away? The white 'fruit' is delicious... If you ever see a cocoa tree, try it. It's like a fruit that tastes like chocolate.
floatingatoll 7y ago
Will this be required to be listed as “added sugars”? (That it’s a component of cocoa beans doesn’t necessarily mean it’s permitted in chocolate as an unlisted component.)
tekproxy 7y ago
I remember in chemistry we learned the difference between ordinary, reagent grade sucrose and the fancy, organic, fair trade, whole wheat, gluten free sucrose. The fancy stuff was way better for you.
- eesmith 7y ago
  How can sucrose be "whole wheat"? And why would reagent grade sucrose have gluten in it? Sucrose usually comes from gluten-free sources, like sugar beets and cane, yes?
  - gamblor956 7y ago
    It was a joke...Sucrose is sucrose regardless of the source.
    - eesmith 7y ago
      Looks like I'm being downvoted because I can't distinguish your humor from your being misinformed by your teacher. I thought it was a lesson that that "reagent grade" is different from "food grade", Eq, https://www.spectrumchemical.com/OA_HTML/chemical-products_Sucrose-Ultrapure_S1697.jsp?minisite=10020&respid=22372&phrase=Sucrose%20Food%20Grade https://www.spectrumchemical.com/OA_HTML/chemical-products_S... lists 99.9% purity, while commenting: "Sucrose, Ultrapure, also known as sugar, is derived from cane sugar and used as a food sweetener. Ungraded products supplied by Spectrum are indicative of a grade suitable for general industrial use or research purposes and typically are not suitable for human consumption or therapeutic use." (What is "reagent grade" for sucrose? Sigma-Aldrich's "ACS reagent grade" sucrose is only promising ≥99% purity (see https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/catalog/substance/sucrose342305750111?lang=en&region=US https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/catalog/substance/sucrose342305... ). So I figured there was some common lab impurity in sucrose that your teacher was referring to, which you mistook for, or mis-remembered as gluten. As you almost certainly know, "organic" and "fair trade" refer to farming and labor practices, which is independent of the chemical content. The latter may be better for your mental well-being, for those sensitive to humans subjected to terrible employment practices.
scotty79 7y ago
Nestle found a way to add sugar to chocolate without saying it added sugar to chocolate and even charge a premium for it.
- toper-centage 7y ago
  It's not sugar! It's cocoa pulp Syrup!

As expected, this is pretty misleading. “The food company is using a patented technique to turn the white pulp that covers cocoa beans into a powder that naturally contains sugar.” They’re not adding any processed sugar, so they can make the “no added sugar” claim. They’re still adding sugar via another method.

Finnucane 7y ago
Yeah, it's unclear from the article what the product is actually going to be composed of. 70% dark chocolate means basically 70% cocao and 30% sugar. Is it still going to be 30% sugar? It might not be cane sugar, but it'll still be sugar.
- pteraspidomorph 7y ago
  That's really not true. Or at least in europe, 70% chocolate contains 70% cocoa solids. The remaining 30% are mostly butter (cocoa butter or another type of fat) and can contain sugar and milk.
  - arcticbull 7y ago
    At least in the US to be called chocolate it has to be cocoa butter. Chocolate is an FDA regulated term. Hershey learned this lesson the hard way a few years back as they tried to change over to vegetable oil, IIRC. [1] Apparently in the UK it must be at least 20% cocoa solids. [1] https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/business/worldbusiness/09iht-chocolate.1.7055816.html https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/business/worldbusiness/09...
  - Finnucane 7y ago
    Generally, manufacturers include the cocao butter in the percentage of cocao solids. And only low-grade chocolates would substitute another kind of fat.
dang 7y ago
Ok, we've changed the title to mostly the subtitle.
pkaye 7y ago
Those who want no added sugar can always get the 100% dark chocolate.
- ineedasername 7y ago
  Basically bakers chocolate. I remember finding some in the pantry as a kid. Hidden candy! Until I took a bite and the bitter crumbly taste of 100% dark hit me.
INTPenis 7y ago
Since it's coming from under the rind of the cocoa bean, wouldn't it be fructose then?
- thatcat 7y ago
  They probably use enzymes to breakdown some cellulose into fructose which is sweeter tasting than glucose or convert glucose to fructose, so they could add less sugar. FTA:"... finding a way to alter the structure of sugar to boost its sweetening power" and then go on to say since it's sweeter they can use 40% less.
p1necone 7y ago
Reminds me of people adding date paste to health foods instead of sugar. Date paste is only sweet because it contains heaps of sugar...
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
dTal 7y ago
"Patented technique" sounds pretty damn processed to me. Just replace "cocoa beans" with "sugar cane" and read it again.
- rolltiide 7y ago
  I mean if just exciting a few electrons turns a molecule into an -ose or -ase polymer, then what do you want to call it? processed sugar has a different colloquial meaning that has nothing to do with whether you found it like that on your farm I think "natural" is the best most relatable term here
  - dTal 7y ago
    Why is it more natural to extract simple sugars from cocoa beans than from sugar cane, beets, corn, or other plants? It sounds exactly the same to me.
Dylan16807 7y ago
> They’re not adding any processed sugar, so they can make the “no added sugar” claim. They’re still adding sugar via another method. This sugar is very much processed. The difference is that they changed the recipe to stop removing this sugar. I wouldn't call it 'added sugar'; it's like using whole milk directly instead of reducing it to 1% milk.
- ineedasername 7y ago
  And I guess from the sound of it the current process is more like reducing to 1% milk and then adding back some fat from another source.
kbenson 7y ago
> They’re not adding any processed sugar, so they can make the “no added sugar” claim. They’re still adding sugar via another method. To me the "no added sugar" pretty clearly encapsulates and is understood to be in-line with what is going on here. The most common place I can think of seeing that phrase in on packaging for fruit juice drinks, and I think it's pretty clearly understood that they still have plenty of sugar, and the only thing it really denotes is whether the product is more "natural" (in a marketing sense).
fitzroy 7y ago
Similar to cured meat with "no added nitrates” but a bunch of added celery powder (which is high in nitrates). https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food/the-uncured-bacon-illusion-its-actually-cured-and-its-not-better-for-you/2019/04/19/0c89630c-608c-11e9-9ff2-abc984dc9eec_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food/the-uncured-ba...

yial 7y ago

It would also be nice instead of just focusing on sugar, nestle focused on not using child labor in their cocoa sourcing process. https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/business/hershey-nestle-mars-chocolate-child-labor-west-africa/?utm_term=.78337193cd00 https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/business/hershe...

vernie 7y ago
Wow, what a poignant paywall.

aaron695 7y ago

It's a broken world if you think this is good at base level. Sugar is mass produced and very efficent. It'll use way less energy than this 'new' method. It doesn't matter where the sugar comes from health wise, magic won't stop it giving you cancer. Unless it's is a different molecule? The cocoa leftovers has a use, such as fertilizer, turning them into hipster food doesn't do much. It might make it more a more interesting world, hipster is a hobby with as much value as most hobbies and it's less efficient, so increases consumption, which is good for economics.

antoncohen 7y ago

Cacao pulp is delicious. It is interesting that we use the bitter seeds from the fruit, and mostly throw out the tasty pulp. If you are in San Francisco you can get cacao fruit smoothies from Dandelion Chocolate. I hope the pulp starts showing up in more food products instead of going to waste.

technothrasher 7y ago
Traditionally the pulp is left on the beans during fermentation to impart flavor, and is basically used up in the process. It's mostly American style chocolate that removes the pulp before fermentation and throws it away, in order to... reduce flavor, I guess?
felipemnoa 7y ago
>>I hope the pulp starts showing up in more food products instead of going to waste. I'd be surprised if it is truly wasted. Most likely it servers some other useful purpose. Fertilizer or fuel are two uses I can think of.

jeanlucas 7y ago

Good side: nice, new ways to use that waste. Bad side: Nestlé.

Haga 7y ago
Microsoft of food
atlasunshrugged 7y ago
Serious question, why is it bad that it's Nestle?
- Cryptokrates 7y ago
  Nestle is one of the worst companies... without getting into the details too much, many of their (business) practices are as anti-human as it gets
- mft_ 7y ago
  I think the majority of the hatred for Nestlé comes from their aggressive approach to selling baby formula in poor countries where (for various reasons) it wasn't appropriate, which probably directly harmed children as a result. However, according to this page, there are other reasons too: https://www.zmescience.com/science/nestle-company-pollution-children/ https://www.zmescience.com/science/nestle-company-pollution-...
  - RobAley 7y ago
    "aggressive approach" - their sales reps dressed as nurses and went into hospitals. It goes a bit beyond "aggressive". "probably directly harmed children" - report after report from (respected) NGOs and the WHO concluded babies died. No "probably", beyond "harmed".
    - mft_ 7y ago
      Thanks for additional info. (I wasn't trying to downplay Nestle's crimes - more just hedge due to my own lack of certainty about the situation.)

twic 7y ago

See also cascara, the dried fruit left over from producing coffee beans: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffee_cherry_tea https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffee_cherry_tea

55555 7y ago

Have they really been throwing it away? The white 'fruit' is delicious... If you ever see a cocoa tree, try it. It's like a fruit that tastes like chocolate.

floatingatoll 7y ago

Will this be required to be listed as “added sugars”? (That it’s a component of cocoa beans doesn’t necessarily mean it’s permitted in chocolate as an unlisted component.)

tekproxy 7y ago

I remember in chemistry we learned the difference between ordinary, reagent grade sucrose and the fancy, organic, fair trade, whole wheat, gluten free sucrose. The fancy stuff was way better for you.

eesmith 7y ago
How can sucrose be "whole wheat"? And why would reagent grade sucrose have gluten in it? Sucrose usually comes from gluten-free sources, like sugar beets and cane, yes?
- gamblor956 7y ago
  It was a joke...Sucrose is sucrose regardless of the source.
  - eesmith 7y ago
    Looks like I'm being downvoted because I can't distinguish your humor from your being misinformed by your teacher. I thought it was a lesson that that "reagent grade" is different from "food grade", Eq, https://www.spectrumchemical.com/OA_HTML/chemical-products_Sucrose-Ultrapure_S1697.jsp?minisite=10020&respid=22372&phrase=Sucrose%20Food%20Grade https://www.spectrumchemical.com/OA_HTML/chemical-products_S... lists 99.9% purity, while commenting: "Sucrose, Ultrapure, also known as sugar, is derived from cane sugar and used as a food sweetener. Ungraded products supplied by Spectrum are indicative of a grade suitable for general industrial use or research purposes and typically are not suitable for human consumption or therapeutic use." (What is "reagent grade" for sucrose? Sigma-Aldrich's "ACS reagent grade" sucrose is only promising ≥99% purity (see https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/catalog/substance/sucrose342305750111?lang=en&region=US https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/catalog/substance/sucrose342305... ). So I figured there was some common lab impurity in sucrose that your teacher was referring to, which you mistook for, or mis-remembered as gluten. As you almost certainly know, "organic" and "fair trade" refer to farming and labor practices, which is independent of the chemical content. The latter may be better for your mental well-being, for those sensitive to humans subjected to terrible employment practices.

scotty79 7y ago

Nestle found a way to add sugar to chocolate without saying it added sugar to chocolate and even charge a premium for it.

toper-centage 7y ago
It's not sugar! It's cocoa pulp Syrup!