From Cocoa Bean to Chocolate Bar

On top of the involved process behind chocolate production, shipping the product far and wide adds a layer of logistical complexity.

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, store shelves will soon be inundated with chocolates of all shapes, flavors, and sizes. While we’re quick to tell the world who gave us our box of Hershey’s Kisses, we never seem to ask: how’d that chocolate get here in the first place?

The logistics of producing and shipping chocolate are intricate and precise, involving the coordination of farmers in Côte d’Ivoire, chocolatiers in Switzerland, and a robust cold supply chain. With a commodity as perishable as chocolate, the room for error is slim.

Building Blocks of Flavor

The initial building block of chocolate is not cocoa, as is commonly believed, but “cacao,” the fruit of the tropical cacao tree. About 70% of the world’s cacao comes from small, two to three hectare family farms in West Africa, where weather conditions are consistently warm and adequately rainy to nourish the vibrant yellow pods. An international crop, cacao is also grown in the warm, wet climates of Indonesia, Peru, the Dominican Republic, and Ecuador.

It’s only after cacao has been fermented, dried, and roasted that this seed becomes “cocoa.” After undergoing the two- to nine-day drying process, the cocoa is shipped off to chocolate makers or evaluated for quality at international markets.

While most beans are grown in tropical climates, most chocolate is produced in the United States, Germany, Switzerland, and Belgium. At the chocolate factory, beans are roasted at low temperatures. Then, through a process called “winnowing,” the beans’ shells are removed from the nibs to expose the meaty bit inside. The nibs are ground into a paste called cocoa mass which, when subjected to high pressure, yields either cocoa powder or cocoa butter.

At last, the time for chocolate production arises. A special machine called a conche rolls, kneads, heats, and aerates the chocolate mass, where it’s refined until smooth. Then, the chocolate is tempered and brought to a stable temperature to achieve its final form and flavor.