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Chocolate

Producing Chocolate is no small thing

President: Paolo MASCARINO - FERRERO S.p.A., Secretary: Antonio FEOLA

Producing chocolate is no small thing: the quality of the finished product is largely influenced by the “masterly” execution of the various stages of its complex production process. The 19th century saw the affirmation of chocolate and the arrival of inventions that changed the way cacao was processed.

In the early 20h century, the industrialisation of production processes took shape and important companies such as Perugina, Novi, Peyrano, Streglio, Majani, Caffarel established themselves in Italy. Others appeared on the market after the Great War, the first being Ferrero. Many of today’s great chocolate companies bear the names of the pioneers who made the chocolate industry what it is today, and they are all committed to protecting the original quality of the product.
In 2022, Italy produced about 378,760 tons of chocolate products for final consumption - for a value of 6,112 million euros - with over 415,212 tons of product exported and a per capita consumption of over 1,8 kg.
There are thousands of different types of chocolate products and the creative minds of Italian producers never sleep!  Here are a few examples of chocolate-based products:

  • Bars of Chocolate

  • Chocolates
  • Spreads
  • Chocolate Eggs
  • Chocolate Bars
  • Other Cacao-based Products
  • Semi-finished Products
  • A little History
  • The Myth of Chocolates
  • The Great 19-TH Century Inventions
  • From the Master Chocolatiers to Today
  • Members
  • Chocolate Bars

    As well as the classic 100-gramme bars of dark, milk, white or gianduja chocolate, it is now possible to buy single-serving size portions to satisfy a sudden “craving for something sweet” or to recharge your energy while studying or working.

    Chocolates

    The creativity of producers fully manifests itself in the production of chocolates, which combine the excellent quality of chocolate with other ingredients such as hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts, cherries and creams. Available in a wide variety of sizes and flavours, chocolates not only satisfy the most demanding palates, but also seduce us with the elegant gift boxes they often come in. It is also easy to be tempted by those practical boxes containing just a few chocolates, offering a convenient solution for a quick, sweet snack.

    Spreads

    Chocolate spreads are an all-Italian product: several generations of children have grown up eating bread or melba toast spread with this delicious mixture of hazelnuts and low-fat cacao for breakfast or as a snack. A healthy energy boost to start a busy day.

    Chocolate Eggs

    An Easter egg embodies tradition and innovation, magic and expectation, sweetness and affection, conquering both hearts and palates. But there is something else that makes a chocolate egg a magical object of desire: the surprise inside, a “Made in Italy” invention that is still only widespread in our country. The creativity of chocolate companies has certainly contributed to enriching this ancient tradition, every year offering attractive wrappings and captivating, imaginative and fun surprises.

    Chocolate Bars

    Chocolate bars filled with biscuit, wafer, milk, caramel, hazelnut, to name but a few. A tasty energy-boosting snack in single-serving size portions, perfect for a break at work or while doing sports.

    Other Cacao-based Products

    Instant hot chocolate and cacao powder are used to make steaming cups of hot chocolate, delicious homemade desserts, or to add flavour and energy to children’s milk at breakfast.

    Semi-finished Products

    Coating chocolate, cacao powder for industrial use, substitute coatings and cacao butter: these are all products destined for use by other industrial and artisan companies for the production of chocolate products or as fillings and toppings for biscuits and other baked goods, confectionery products and ice cream. Semi-finished products represent about a quarter of all industrial cacao-based products.

    A little History

    The cacao plant has very ancient origins: it is believed to have been growing in the Amazon and Orinoco river basins over 6000 years ago, and that the first farmers to cultivate it were the Mayans in around 1000 BC. After the Mayans, the Aztecs also began to cultivate cacao and later to produce chocolate, associating it with Xochiquetzal, the goddess of fertility. Among these populations, cacao was consumed by the elite during important ceremonies, and was considered mystical and religious.
    The first European to come into contact with cacao was Christopher Columbus, during his fourth and last trip to America in 1502, when he landed in Honduras and had the opportunity to taste a cacao-based drink. But cacao was only introduced into Europe in 1519, thanks to Hernàn Cortéz, where it was consumed with the addition of vanilla and sugar to reduce the naturally bitter taste.
    Cacao was imported to Italy sometime between the 16th and 17th centuries. The first cities to produce it were Florence, Venice and Turin. In the 17th century, it became a widespread luxury among European nobles, and the Dutch, who were skilled navigators, gained global control and market dominance from the Spaniards.

    The Myth of Chocolates

    There are different opinions on the invention of chocolates. The most suggestive is that they were the consequence of an accident in a Duke’s kitchen: a saucepan full of caramelised sugar accidentally spilled over some almonds, igniting the imagination of the chef, who created a bite-size dessert covered with chocolate.
    However, it appears that the first chocolates were made in Turin (late 1700s), in Piedmont, the region that also boasts the invention of Gianduiotti chocolates. The exquisite chocolate and ground hazelnut paste used to make these chocolates was the result of the blockade designed by Napoleon to paralyze Great Britain through the destruction of British commerce: cacao, the cost of which had become very high, was then “diluted” with hazelnuts.

    The Great 19-TH Century Invetions

    The 19th century saw the affirmation of solid chocolate and the arrival of inventions that revolutionised the way cacao was processed. In 1802, a Genoese man named Bozelli invented a hydraulic machine to refine the cacao mass and mix it with sugar and vanilla. In 1820, the first commercial bar of chocolate was born, produced in England, and in 1828 the Dutch chemist and chocolatier Coenraad Johannes van Houten developed a special press that separated the butter from the cacao powder. In 1875, milk chocolate was launched on the market, while in 1879 the conching process was invented, which consists of the melted chocolate being stirred for a long time to ensure a uniform mixture.

    From the Master Chocolatiers to Today

    At the beginning of the 20th century, the industrialisation of production processes began, while cacao plantations spread into the Ivory Coast, Cameroon, East Africa and Malaysia. At the same time, the ingenuity of the master chocolatiers continued to produce new creations, such as the chocolate bar, invented in 1923.

    Members

    AMEDEI S.R.L. - Via per S. Gervasio 29 - 56025 Pontedera (PI) - www.amedei.it 

    BALOCCO S.P.A. - Via S. Lucia 51 - 12045 Fossano (CN) - www.balocco.it   

    BARATTI & MILANO S.R.L. - Via Don Orione 119/c - 12042 Bra (CN) - www.barattiemilano.it   

    BARRY CALLEBAUT MANUFACTURING ITALIA S.P.A. - Via Felice Cavallotti 35 - 28921 Verbania Intra (VB) - www.barry-callebaut.com 

    BAULI S.P.A. - Via Verdi 31 - 37060 Castel D'Azzano (VR) - www.bauli.it 

    CAMEO S.P.A. - Via Ugo La Malfa 60 - 25015 Desenzano del Garda (BS) - company.cameo.it  

    COIND SOCIETÀ COOPERATIVA R.L. - Via Saliceto 22/H - 40013 Castel Maggiore (BO) - www.coind.it 

    COSWELL S.P.A. - Via Piero Gobetti 4 - 40050 Funo DI Argelato (BO) - www.coswell.biz/home-it  

    DOLFIN S.P.A. - S.S. 114 - Km 71.043 - 95010 Carruba Riposto (CT) - www.dolfin.it  

    ELAH-DUFOUR S.P.A. - Strada Serravalle 73 - 15067 Novi Ligure (AL) - www.elah-dufour.it  

    FERRERO S.P.A. - P.le Ferrero 1 - 12051 Alba (CN) - www.ferrero.it  

    GALUP S.R.L. A SOCIO UNICO - Via Fenestrelle 32 - 10064 Pinerolo (TO) - www.galup.it  

    GANDOLA BISCOTTI S.P.A. - Via Lavoro ed Industria 1041 - 25030 Rudiano (BS) - www.gandola.it 

    GIAMPAOLI INDUSTRIA DOLCIARIA S.P.A. - Via L. Albertini 14 - 60131 Ancona (AN) - www.giampaolidolciaria.com  

    GOLOSITÀ DAL 1885 S.R.L. - Via Piana Gallo 48 - 12060 Grinzane Cavour (TO) - www.sebaste.it  

    HOLDING DOLCIARIA ITALIANA S.P.A. - S.P. Paullese Km 456 - 26012 Castelleone (CR) - www.hdi-spa.it 

    I.C.A.M. S.P.A. - Via Pescatori 53 - 23900 Lecco (LC) - www.icamcioccolato.it  

    I.D.B. INDUSTRIA DOLCIARIA BELPASSO S.P.A. - Contrada Timpa Magna s.n.c. - 95032 Belpasso (CT) - www.condorelli.it 

    IRCA S.P.A. - Viale Danimarca n. 30 - 21013 Gallarate (VA) - www.irca.eu  

    JULIUS MEINL ITALIA S.P.A. - Via Macello 26/B - 39100 Bolzano (BZ) - www.meinlcoffee.com/it/ 

    LA SUISSA S.R.L. - Via Serravalle 99 - 15061 Arquata Scrivia AL -  www.lasuissa.it   

    LAICA S.P.A. - Via Vittorio Veneto 102 - 28041 Arona (NO) - www.laica.eu  

    LINDT & SPRÜNGLI S.P.A. - Largo Edordo Bulgheroni 1 - 21056 Induno Olona (VA) - www.lindt.com  

    LUIGI ZAINI S.P.A. - Via Imbonati 59 - 20159 Milano - www.zainispa.it  

    MAINA PANETTONI S.P.A. - Via Bra 109 - Frazione Tagliata - 12045 Fossano (CN) - www.mainapanettoni.com  

    MAJANI 1796 S.P.A. - Via G. Brodolini 16 - 40056 Crespellano (BO) - www.majani.it  

    MANGINI S.P.A. - Via Vecchia Tortona 55 - 15062 Bosco Marengo (AL) - www.manginicaramelle.it  

    MARS ITALIA S.P.A. - Centro Direzionale Milanofiori - Viale Milanofiori Strada 2 Palazzo C3 - 20090 Assago (MI) - www.mars.com  

    MONDELEZ ITALIA S.R.L. - Via Nizzoli 3 - 20147 Milano (MI) - www.mondelezinternational.it 

    NESTLÈ ITALIANA S.P.A. - Via del Mulino 6 - 20090 Assago (MI) - www.nestle.it 

    NUOVA PASTICCERIA S.R.L. - Via Friuli 1 - 20098 S. Giuliano Milanese (MI) - www.nuovapasticceria.com  

    PALUANI 1921 S.R.L. - Via dell'Artigianato 18 - Frazione Dossobuono - 37139 Villafranca (VR) - www.paluani.it 

    PASTIGLIE LEONE S.R.L. - Via Italia 46 - 10093 Collegno TO - www.pastiglieleone.it  

    PEDON S.P.A. - Via del Progresso 32 - 36064 Colceresa (VI) - www.pedon.it   

    PERFETTI VAN MELLE S.P.A. - Via XXV Aprile 7 - 20020 Lainate MI - www.perfettivanmelle.com  

    PERNIGOTTI S.P.A. - Viale della Rimembranza 100 - 15067 Novi Ligure AL - www.pernigotti.it  

    SPERLARI S.R.L. - Via Milano 16 - 26100 Cremona (CR) - www.sperlari.it 

    STREGA ALBERTI BENEVENTO S.P.A. - Piazza Colonna - 82100 Benevento (BN) - www.strega.it  

    VENCHI S.P.A. - Via Venchi 1 - 12040 Castelletto Stura CN - www.venchi.it  

    WITOR’S S.P.A. - Via Levata 2 - 26010 Corte de' Frati CR - www.witors.it