chocolate

Chocolate is a product made from cacao beans of Theobroma cacao. The beans are fermented, dried, roasted, and ground into a paste called liquor, which can be separated into cocoa solids and cocoa butter. When liquor is mixed with sugar and, in some varieties, milk, and then refined and conched, it becomes chocolate. Common varieties include dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate.

The cacao plant is native to the tropical Americas. Maya and Aztec cultures used cacao beans to make beverages and as a form of currency. After European contact in the 16th century, chocolate spread to Europe, where it was sweetened and developed into solid bars in the 19th century, aided by innovations such as conching and the addition of milk.

Typical production steps are: harvesting pods, fermenting and drying beans, roasting, cracking and winnowing, grinding into liquor, and pressing to separate cocoa butter. The liquor is processed into solid chocolate by blending with sugar and other ingredients; dark chocolate uses little or no milk, milk chocolate includes milk powder or condensed milk, and white chocolate uses cocoa butter without cocoa solids.

Chocolate provides fats from cocoa butter, sugars, and small amounts of protein. It contains caffeine and theobromine, and, depending on processing, flavonoid antioxidants. The exact nutritional profile varies with cocoa content and added ingredients.

It is a major global commodity produced in many regions, with notable production in West Africa and the Americas. The industry faces sustainability challenges, including deforestation and farmer income, and various programs promote fair trade and responsible sourcing.