Chocolate as we already know has become expensive, that is because cacao trees mainly from Ghana and Ivory Coast have not been producing as much, and that is due to climate change issues. So companies that depend on chocolate for their business are looking for alternatives, not alternatives to chocolate but alternative ways to produce it. And there are now many. They involve the fermentation and roasting of legumes, grain and seeds in various combinations. Favorites are rice and sunflower. Once fermented they may be roasted, then fats added, and maybe carob and what other products they deem will reproduce the texture, taste and even melting quality of chocolate. Some producers, such as Aldi are already using this new form of chocolate in their products. Caillebaut, the Swiss chocolatier is going another route, they are using chemistry to reproduce the enzymes of cacao cells, and are having success.
he new formulae for chocolate are being touted as better for the environment. Cacao trees require lots of water, for example, and also to be noted their use involve child labor. The new ways which are basically centered on plant products obviously do not. But here is the trade off, the new chocolate while making a difference to the environment does not have the health benefits of the real thing. Gone are the properties that help the immune system, that are rich in antioxidants, help with heart and brain function, provide essential minerals, help with gut health by promoting good bacteria and even help skin by protecting against sun damage.
So soon buying chocolate, which is so beloved by so many of us, will involve serious choices for our health, our concern for the environment, our tacit endorsement of substitutes for the real thing and no doubt for our pocketbook as well.
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