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Having worked in Whole Foods and been surrounded by family who prefer organic, free/fair type foods, I must say I do understand there is a market for the chocol

Having worked in Whole Foods and been surrounded by family who prefer organic, free/fair type foods, I must say I do understand there is a market for the chocolates we usually see marketed as non-European. There's an emphasis on dark chocolate, "artisanal blends" with spices, etc. The kind of chocolate people pay extra for because they think it's special, then don't touch because they paid extra for and want to preserve it, only for it to expire in the pantry. Let me be honest. I prefer European-style chocolate. Milk chocolate. White chocolate. They're much richer, and I hope there will continue to be a great supply of this type of chocolate. Maybe that Swiss brand recognition has more to do with the fact that it actually tastes really good versus what's being attributed to hand-wavy concepts about colonialism and power structures.

rory 6y ago
Hey I actually like that dark, spiced chocolate! I'm also skeptical it's any more expensive than the Swiss chocolate sold in gaudy mall stores like Lindt and Teuscher. There's obviously a market for these sort of "non-European-style" chocolates, which, as you said, are marketed specifically as being associated with countries like Ghana. In NE Asia there's actually a chocolate bar just called Ghana (made in Japan..)! So why shouldn't Ghana try to capture more of the value of that market? I'm sure Swiss chocolate makers can source their cocoa elsewhere, and milk chocolate needs far less actual cocoa anyway.
reducesuffering 6y ago
> "I prefer European-style chocolate. Milk chocolate. White chocolate. They're much richer" And also much unhealthier. They contain copious amounts of added, refined sugar. Cocoa can be healthy given it's nutrient profile, but only outweighs the damage added sugar causes if the chocolate is >90% cacao.
- 1MachineElf 6y ago
  You make a very fair point about the sugar content, and I should give it weight because I am predisposed to diabetes due to genetic factors, however, have you considered the negative effects of the higher stimulant content in "dark" chocolate? I feel that a sugar addiction is easier to manage than an addiction to cocoa's theobromine, caffiene, phenylethylamine, and pheobromine. Even if I was in ketosis, I would avoid cocoa nibs just because the stimulant effects seem more disruptive than they're worth.
saiya-jin 6y ago
As for Lindt, milk and white chocolates are rather small portion of their portfolio [1], and at least here in Switzerland it looks accordingly in the shops - these 'artisanal' types take 80-90% of the shelves and overall are bought more than basic milk/white ones. Personally, these days if I buy then only dark one with sea salt. Fun fact - there is stark difference between Lindt made in Switzerland and the ones made in EU (had ones from France and Germany, you have to look for fine print in the back since overall design is same). Swiss-made I found unsurprisingly only in Swiss supermarkets, with the price being 50-100% higher than the same in EU supermarkets, but the taste is much, much better. I guess higher quality coca beans are used but not sure here. They are so good that I don't seek out local/foreign artisanal chocolate anymore, since every single one of them simply doesn't compare (apart from price which can be even significantly higher). Over the years, I've tried many. But this is obviously highly subjective and true only for variants of dark chocolate, I don't buy other types. [1] https://www.chocolate.lindt.com/our-chocolate/our-brands/excellence https://www.chocolate.lindt.com/our-chocolate/our-brands/exc...
- 1MachineElf 6y ago
  I love just about everything made by Lindt, with the exception of the products of their that I haven't tried yet. The dark one with sea salt is especially enticing, but I avoid it as well dark chocolate in general, because of the higher stimulant content. It makes me wonder how much of dark chocolate's growing popularity has to do with the stimulants it contains. As I tried to elude to by mentioning my prior experience at Whole Foods, I have broad exposure to different foods, i.e. I really do understand how satisfying a bag of bitter raw cocoa nibs can be. I j
samatman 6y ago
I might have a bad attitude about people's food preferences as well, if I had worked at Whole Foods. I assure you, a bar of dark chocolate with "fancy" spices has never expired in my pantry. The Swiss stuff is ok, if your palate reached maturity at seven years old†. † this is not my actual opinion. I'm ribbing you.
- 1MachineElf 6y ago
  Thanks. I think there is a very real point to be made, that Americans tend to have a narrow palate due to exposure to fewer varieties of foods and exposure to primarily processed foods. Someone else here mentioned Lindt. Their Lindor truffles are often on sale in CVS Pharmacy and similar locations in the US. These treats are very popular, and people really enjoy them because of the pseudo chocolate ganache in the center. Real chocolate ganache is made with butter, which isn't so common in Africa. Less availability of butter in Africa leads me to think that we won't see chocolate ganache-inspired products coming from Africa. The hotter weather of the continent makes me wonder if chocolate meant to melt in your mouth like ganache-inspired products will really take off there. Of course I would like to be surprised here, but I will just keep buying the Swiss stuff until then.

rory 6y ago

Hey I actually like that dark, spiced chocolate! I'm also skeptical it's any more expensive than the Swiss chocolate sold in gaudy mall stores like Lindt and Teuscher. There's obviously a market for these sort of "non-European-style" chocolates, which, as you said, are marketed specifically as being associated with countries like Ghana. In NE Asia there's actually a chocolate bar just called Ghana (made in Japan..)! So why shouldn't Ghana try to capture more of the value of that market? I'm sure Swiss chocolate makers can source their cocoa elsewhere, and milk chocolate needs far less actual cocoa anyway.

reducesuffering 6y ago

> "I prefer European-style chocolate. Milk chocolate. White chocolate. They're much richer" And also much unhealthier. They contain copious amounts of added, refined sugar. Cocoa can be healthy given it's nutrient profile, but only outweighs the damage added sugar causes if the chocolate is >90% cacao.

1MachineElf 6y ago
You make a very fair point about the sugar content, and I should give it weight because I am predisposed to diabetes due to genetic factors, however, have you considered the negative effects of the higher stimulant content in "dark" chocolate? I feel that a sugar addiction is easier to manage than an addiction to cocoa's theobromine, caffiene, phenylethylamine, and pheobromine. Even if I was in ketosis, I would avoid cocoa nibs just because the stimulant effects seem more disruptive than they're worth.

saiya-jin 6y ago

As for Lindt, milk and white chocolates are rather small portion of their portfolio [1], and at least here in Switzerland it looks accordingly in the shops - these 'artisanal' types take 80-90% of the shelves and overall are bought more than basic milk/white ones. Personally, these days if I buy then only dark one with sea salt. Fun fact - there is stark difference between Lindt made in Switzerland and the ones made in EU (had ones from France and Germany, you have to look for fine print in the back since overall design is same). Swiss-made I found unsurprisingly only in Swiss supermarkets, with the price being 50-100% higher than the same in EU supermarkets, but the taste is much, much better. I guess higher quality coca beans are used but not sure here. They are so good that I don't seek out local/foreign artisanal chocolate anymore, since every single one of them simply doesn't compare (apart from price which can be even significantly higher). Over the years, I've tried many. But this is obviously highly subjective and true only for variants of dark chocolate, I don't buy other types. [1] https://www.chocolate.lindt.com/our-chocolate/our-brands/excellence https://www.chocolate.lindt.com/our-chocolate/our-brands/exc...

1MachineElf 6y ago
I love just about everything made by Lindt, with the exception of the products of their that I haven't tried yet. The dark one with sea salt is especially enticing, but I avoid it as well dark chocolate in general, because of the higher stimulant content. It makes me wonder how much of dark chocolate's growing popularity has to do with the stimulants it contains. As I tried to elude to by mentioning my prior experience at Whole Foods, I have broad exposure to different foods, i.e. I really do understand how satisfying a bag of bitter raw cocoa nibs can be. I j

samatman 6y ago

I might have a bad attitude about people's food preferences as well, if I had worked at Whole Foods. I assure you, a bar of dark chocolate with "fancy" spices has never expired in my pantry. The Swiss stuff is ok, if your palate reached maturity at seven years old†. † this is not my actual opinion. I'm ribbing you.

1MachineElf 6y ago
Thanks. I think there is a very real point to be made, that Americans tend to have a narrow palate due to exposure to fewer varieties of foods and exposure to primarily processed foods. Someone else here mentioned Lindt. Their Lindor truffles are often on sale in CVS Pharmacy and similar locations in the US. These treats are very popular, and people really enjoy them because of the pseudo chocolate ganache in the center. Real chocolate ganache is made with butter, which isn't so common in Africa. Less availability of butter in Africa leads me to think that we won't see chocolate ganache-inspired products coming from Africa. The hotter weather of the continent makes me wonder if chocolate meant to melt in your mouth like ganache-inspired products will really take off there. Of course I would like to be surprised here, but I will just keep buying the Swiss stuff until then.