| August 2008 Chocolate News Archive |
|
Any comments or suggestions, and let us know what you're thinking. |
August 27, 2008 - With all of the recent increases in the price of materials chocolate companies are cutting back. Reports have Cadbury
cutting 330 positions in their Australia and New Zealand operations. They are also investing millions of dollars in their Dunedin, New
Zealand plant at the same time. Other companies are raising prices, Mars may raise wholesale prices 12% following Hershey's recent
price raising. More potential good news for chocolate lovers on the health front. Researchers from Boston-based Hebrew SeniorLife, Beth
Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Brigham and Women's Hospital have come to the conclusion that chocolate consumption can lead
to a 10% increase in the flow of blood to the brain which can help prevent strokes and dementia. The study was financed by Mars and had a
small control group but still it looks promising. Dark Chocolate sales have been trending upwards in Australia. A recent study by Lindt
found that sales of Dark Chocolate, pushed up by waves of news about its healthy benefits, had increased by 40% in the last year.
Cadbury's Old Gold Bar has 41% of the market which is pretty amazing when you think about it. Michigan State University dairy stores in
East Lansing offer a local concoction named chocolate cheese confection. It is fudge like in texture and made with cheddar and other
cheeses, cocoa, powdered sugar and peanuts. It's a dessert cheese and can be ordered online as well as purchased at MSU. Cafe
Fleuri's Chocolate Bar at the Langham Hotel, Boston, MA, will be celebrating their 20th Anniversary this year and are responding to the
challenge. Pastry chef Trena Costello has put together a selection of items for the celebration and the Bostonist has some great photos of
her work.
August 26, 2008 - Deborah Markus, of Bellaonline, has an interesting article on research being done to find if chocolate consumption can
help cure or at least alleviate the symptoms of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) . Steve Atkin, a professor at Hull York Medical School,
started conducting the research after one of his CFS patients told him that she had started eating dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate
and was feeling better. His methodology seems quite good and he comes to the conclusion that those who consume very dark, his study
used 85% cocoa, did do better. The Contra Costa Times has two interesting chocolate ice cream recipes. The first is for Peanut Butter
Chocolate Chip Ice Cream and the second is for Dark Chocolate Ice Cream. The Hershey Story, the new museum that will chronicle the
life of Milton Hershey and the company and town he created. The museum will open in January and you have to love the address 111 W.
Chocolate Ave. The museum will be run by Don Papson the museum's interim director, and Amy Bischof will be the associate director. The
foundation that runs the museum is still looking for someone to become the permanent director to take over for Mr. Papson. we've enjoyed
our visits to Hershey and we guess that the new museum will be another fine attraction in the town. Kent Bakke, the man who made La
Marzocco espresso machines in Ballard, Washington for ten years has tackled a new project. He is opening Claudio Corallo Chocolate to
market chocolate produced by Claudio Corallo in São Tomé and Príncipe in the Gulf of Guinea off Africa. He claims Mr. Corallo's plants are
surperior as they date back to plants brought over from Brazil in the 1820s and have never been genetically altered.
August 24, 2008 - Chocosuisse, the association of Swiss chocolate manufacturers has announced that exports of swiss chocolate from
Switzerland to China have increased from 2 tons in 2001 to 308 tons in 2007. The dollar total isn't that staggering, $1,900,000 in 2007 but
the growth is amazing. As Chinese consumers have increased earning power over the next few years look for consumption of chocolate to
keep increasing.
The Indiana Economic Development Corp., its Small Business Development Centers network, Purdue University and the Edward Lowe
Foundation, have combined to name 50 firms to watch in Indiana. The South Bend Chocolate Company was one of the companies
honored. Hershey has announced newer projections for the balance of 2008 and 2009. They have also announced that they will be
increasing prices 11% to help offset increased costs for cocoa, sugar, peanuts and energy. For the second year in a row Divine Chocolate
- a Fairtrade Company based in United Kingdom which is a partnership between cocoa farmers in Ghana and marketing interests in Great
Britain has been able to pay a dividend to the cocoa farmers. The firm has been enjoying 20% a year growth. A tractor trailer full of
Hershey Chocolate overturned on a Missouri Highway injuring three. Police sources said the driver was speeding at the time. Upstate New
York chocolate businesses are getting hit by higher prices for everything and are watching delivery costs skyrocket. They raise prices and
hope consumers wont look for less expensive eating alternatives.
August 22, 2008 - In the United Kingdom the Food Standards Agency has issued an alert and recall for Snacking Essentials Milk
Chocolate Covered Raisins (100g). They may have been coated with milk chocolate that has traces of peanuts in them which is not on the
products label. The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory in Valparaiso, Indiana was the scene of a bear napping. Truffles, a four foot stuffed
bear, has guarded the entrance to The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory for the last two years. But alas Truffles and her rocking chair were
stolen Friday, August 8th. Here's to Truffles safe return. The Barry Callebaut Chocolate Academy will be opening its Chicago branch next
month. Callebaut has named Jerome Landrieu as the Academy's head. Mr. Landrieu has won many awards including top honors at Salon
du Chocolat in Paris. By opening these academies the Callebaut Company hopes to create greater brand awareness. 247 SW Highway
101 in Lincoln City, Oregon is the home to Tsunami Coffee and Chocolate Company. The store moved from Gleneden Beach last month
and they make their own truffles on the premises. An eChocolateNYC good luck tip of the cap to the shops owners Bryan and Sherry Fitch.
Maggie Achorn a chocolatier from Maine found she had outgrown her home's kitchen when it came to operating her chocolate business. In
need of greater space she found the solution of using the kitchen at the Belfast Square Apartments a complex set up for the elderly. She
plans on offering cooking and baking classes and is interested in allowing others to use the kitchen.
August 18, 2008 - If you are a fan of Cadbury's Wispa bar mark down October 6th as that's the day the Wispa will rejoin the Cadbury
lineup. After a tremendous amount of public relations pressure was put on the company by fans of the bar the company brought it back for a
seven week trial run last year. Twenty million bars were bought and Cadbury was convinced to bring the bar back. The pressure was mostly
due to social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace where fans were able to organize and let the company know how much they
missed the bar. If you're in Aberdeen, South Dakota after August 29th drop by the Palm Garden Cafe & Chocolate Shoppe located at 602
S. Third St. The grand opening is the 28th. The upstairs has a sports museum while the downstairs has a restaurant and a chocolate shop
that will sell chocolates as well as pastries. The WOW factor runs strong in the next story which has an accompanying video. Walt Lewis
of Huntington, West Virginia, recently started a company CHIAMMAYA Custom Crafted Chocolate. His chocolate has only four ingredients
cocoa, almonds, cinnamon and sugar. He'll adjust the chocolate, which looks to us more like cooking than eating chocolate, to satisfy your
tastes. What makes this story ultra WOW is that his "factory" is built into a U Haul It truck which allows him to drive around, good advertising
we suppose, and let his customers see how their chocolate is made. WIII TV has a nice piece on The Gourmet Brownie Kitchen in Texas.
Their brownies look great. Dec. 21, 2007 was the last day of operation for the Moirs Chocolate Factory in Dartmouth, Canada. The factory
produced the Pot Of Gold chocolate bar among other items. The Pot of Gold was started in 1928 but the company started in 1815 when
James Moir first began producing confectionery products. Hershey took over the plant 20 years ago. Six hundred workers lost their jobs at
the time but a job retraining center across from the plant is helping many acquire new skills so that they can find employment. The people
of Tasmania may owe the Mars chocolate company a big thank you. Mars has announced a 3 year four million Australian Dollars deal to
sponsor an AFL ( Australian Football League ) team in Tasmania. This sponsorship may allow the area to finally get a team. Hershey is a
couple of weeks into its new television campaign. The spot was put together by Wallace and Gromit creators Aardman Animations. It has
animated chocolate characters happily interacting while the Modern English song " I'll Melt With You" plays in the background. The Sydney
Morning Herald has an interesting article about Xocai Chocolate. According to the article the companies owners, Jeanette and Martin
Brooks , have had legal problems in the past from setting up businesses that are run as pyramid selling operations. The article states "
The Brookses' creditors included the US and Canadian tax offices, business partners and angry distributors of a previous product, the
Phoenix Fiber Cookie, which was withdrawn after the US Food and Drug Administration found that false health claims were being made for
it. " Xocai chocolate is a mix of the acai berry and cocoa and the company claims it provides many healthful benefits. The Belgian Royal
Association of the Chocolate, Praline, Biscuits and Sugar Confectionery Industry has developed a set of guidelines that must be followed
for chocolate to be labeled as "Belgian Chocolate". The phrase itself has become a definition for high quality chocolate and the
Association is afraid that it will become a generic term. Although the beans would not have to be ground in Belgium to qualify the
processing and moulding of the chocolate would have to be. The Association would also like products that are partially Belgian chocolate
to be labeled as "Made with Belgian chocolate" so that it is somewhat apparent the whole product was not made in Belgium. The definition
is not legally binding which is a shame, we believe anything that helps to inform a consumer is a good thing, it should still go a long way in
clarifying some of the confusion currently in the marketplace. We kind of figured this was going to happen. The Danish firm AAK, makers
of many vegetable oil products, has seen a sharp increase for their vegetable oil based cocoa butter equivalents. With cocoa beans
constantly trending higher the demand for cocoa butter equivalents will only increase as chocolate manufacturers look to lower costs.
August 14, 2008 - Enjoy Chocolate Foods has released a new product, boomChocoboom bars. The bars are the first dairy, nut and soy
free chocolate bars which makes them edible for those with allergies. The bars will be available nationally in Whole Foods markets. You
can read the Press Release here.
August 13, 2008 - Once again Deborah Markus of BellaOnline has a useful article. In this one she reviews King Arthur Flour Chocolate
Cake Mix.For the record she likes the product. Swiss chocolatiers, Barry Callebaut have followed up the selling of consumer oriented
chocolate businesses in Senegal and the Ivory Coast by selling off their 74.7% share in Chococam a Cameroon based consumer goods
business. The divesting of these firms allows Barry Callebaut to focus on cocoa bean sourcing and processing. If you happen to be in
Maine this Friday night you might want to drop by St. George's Episcopal Church, 407 York Street, York Harbor, Maine. From 6:00 - 8:30 PM
they will be holding their annual Chocolate Fest with the proceeds going to help the library. Local merchants will be providing the chocolate
so you might want to use this as an opportunity to explore what is available in the region.
August 11, 2008 - As borders disappear and food from all nations becomes readily available consumers have to think more about their
food safety. California's department of public health has warned consumers not to eat Huevines Confitados Sabor chocolate products,
produced in Mexico by Confitados Finos Del Bosque. The chocolates tested as having twice the allowable level of lead under California
law. Meanwhile brown candies made by Kee Wee Hup Kee Food Manufacture of Malaysia were found to have seven times the allowable
level of lead. Natra the chocolate company from Spain is introducing a new chocolate snack for the private label market. It will have a
chocolate coated biscuit base and a cream strip on top mixed with either muesli, red fruits or cereals. Deborah Markus the BellaOnline
chocolate editor has a review of Ghirardelli Brownie Mix which is interesting reading for the average brownie maker. Swiss chocolate
makers Barry Callebaut are expanding their operations in India by opening their first chocolate academy in India. India along with China is
seen as one of the big growth opportunities in the chocolate universe in the next few years with projected double digit growth. Callebaut will
be opening two other academies this year bringing the total to twelve worldwide. The academies give Callebaut an opening into markets
as they work along side local chocolate artisans. A new report out of Europe finds that the growth of premium chocolate has led to an
interesting situation. As consumers shift over to high end chocolate sales my weight are decreasing but the value of the sales are
increasing owing to the higher prices. With its demerger from the soft drink side of the business complete Cadbury is on its own as a
confectionery company. Even with good profit results from the first quarter Cadbury is planning on further cost cutting to keep costs down.
With increases in commodity prices companies can only cut in narrow areas to keep retail prices steady. Filippo Cerulli, the new president
of CAOBISCO talks to ConfectioneryNews.com and the head of this European trade group has a lot of interesting information to impart
about the current market in Europe and how regional as opposed to national solutions are sought for problems in supply. The European
Commission has given the go ahead for the Wrigley Mars merger. The Commission found since Wrigley was primarily gum and Mars was
primarily chocolate there wasn't a significant overlap in the two companies.
August 05, 2008 - Theobroma Chocolate Lounge, a branch of the Australian firm, is opening at 1 Utama, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The
Boston Globe has a neat article about the chocolate scene in New York City. They cover Chocolate Bar and The Chocolate Room. Uniq will
shut down its Riviera Desserts operation at Paignton , Devon , England. The factory produces trifles and chocolate pudding and will cost
350 workers their jobs. The companies products will continue to be produced and sold at Marks and Spencer. As wonderful as chocolate
is every once and awhile the craving can get you into serious trouble. In England a driver for the Foreign Office pulled over to buy a
chocolate bar, allowing thieves to hijack his truck and make off with close to five million dollars worth of blank passports. The government
is worried the passports may fall into the hands of terrorists or criminals.
cutting 330 positions in their Australia and New Zealand operations. They are also investing millions of dollars in their Dunedin, New
Zealand plant at the same time. Other companies are raising prices, Mars may raise wholesale prices 12% following Hershey's recent
price raising. More potential good news for chocolate lovers on the health front. Researchers from Boston-based Hebrew SeniorLife, Beth
Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Brigham and Women's Hospital have come to the conclusion that chocolate consumption can lead
to a 10% increase in the flow of blood to the brain which can help prevent strokes and dementia. The study was financed by Mars and had a
small control group but still it looks promising. Dark Chocolate sales have been trending upwards in Australia. A recent study by Lindt
found that sales of Dark Chocolate, pushed up by waves of news about its healthy benefits, had increased by 40% in the last year.
Cadbury's Old Gold Bar has 41% of the market which is pretty amazing when you think about it. Michigan State University dairy stores in
East Lansing offer a local concoction named chocolate cheese confection. It is fudge like in texture and made with cheddar and other
cheeses, cocoa, powdered sugar and peanuts. It's a dessert cheese and can be ordered online as well as purchased at MSU. Cafe
Fleuri's Chocolate Bar at the Langham Hotel, Boston, MA, will be celebrating their 20th Anniversary this year and are responding to the
challenge. Pastry chef Trena Costello has put together a selection of items for the celebration and the Bostonist has some great photos of
her work.
August 26, 2008 - Deborah Markus, of Bellaonline, has an interesting article on research being done to find if chocolate consumption can
help cure or at least alleviate the symptoms of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) . Steve Atkin, a professor at Hull York Medical School,
started conducting the research after one of his CFS patients told him that she had started eating dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate
and was feeling better. His methodology seems quite good and he comes to the conclusion that those who consume very dark, his study
used 85% cocoa, did do better. The Contra Costa Times has two interesting chocolate ice cream recipes. The first is for Peanut Butter
Chocolate Chip Ice Cream and the second is for Dark Chocolate Ice Cream. The Hershey Story, the new museum that will chronicle the
life of Milton Hershey and the company and town he created. The museum will open in January and you have to love the address 111 W.
Chocolate Ave. The museum will be run by Don Papson the museum's interim director, and Amy Bischof will be the associate director. The
foundation that runs the museum is still looking for someone to become the permanent director to take over for Mr. Papson. we've enjoyed
our visits to Hershey and we guess that the new museum will be another fine attraction in the town. Kent Bakke, the man who made La
Marzocco espresso machines in Ballard, Washington for ten years has tackled a new project. He is opening Claudio Corallo Chocolate to
market chocolate produced by Claudio Corallo in São Tomé and Príncipe in the Gulf of Guinea off Africa. He claims Mr. Corallo's plants are
surperior as they date back to plants brought over from Brazil in the 1820s and have never been genetically altered.
August 24, 2008 - Chocosuisse, the association of Swiss chocolate manufacturers has announced that exports of swiss chocolate from
Switzerland to China have increased from 2 tons in 2001 to 308 tons in 2007. The dollar total isn't that staggering, $1,900,000 in 2007 but
the growth is amazing. As Chinese consumers have increased earning power over the next few years look for consumption of chocolate to
keep increasing.
The Indiana Economic Development Corp., its Small Business Development Centers network, Purdue University and the Edward Lowe
Foundation, have combined to name 50 firms to watch in Indiana. The South Bend Chocolate Company was one of the companies
honored. Hershey has announced newer projections for the balance of 2008 and 2009. They have also announced that they will be
increasing prices 11% to help offset increased costs for cocoa, sugar, peanuts and energy. For the second year in a row Divine Chocolate
- a Fairtrade Company based in United Kingdom which is a partnership between cocoa farmers in Ghana and marketing interests in Great
Britain has been able to pay a dividend to the cocoa farmers. The firm has been enjoying 20% a year growth. A tractor trailer full of
Hershey Chocolate overturned on a Missouri Highway injuring three. Police sources said the driver was speeding at the time. Upstate New
York chocolate businesses are getting hit by higher prices for everything and are watching delivery costs skyrocket. They raise prices and
hope consumers wont look for less expensive eating alternatives.
August 22, 2008 - In the United Kingdom the Food Standards Agency has issued an alert and recall for Snacking Essentials Milk
Chocolate Covered Raisins (100g). They may have been coated with milk chocolate that has traces of peanuts in them which is not on the
products label. The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory in Valparaiso, Indiana was the scene of a bear napping. Truffles, a four foot stuffed
bear, has guarded the entrance to The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory for the last two years. But alas Truffles and her rocking chair were
stolen Friday, August 8th. Here's to Truffles safe return. The Barry Callebaut Chocolate Academy will be opening its Chicago branch next
month. Callebaut has named Jerome Landrieu as the Academy's head. Mr. Landrieu has won many awards including top honors at Salon
du Chocolat in Paris. By opening these academies the Callebaut Company hopes to create greater brand awareness. 247 SW Highway
101 in Lincoln City, Oregon is the home to Tsunami Coffee and Chocolate Company. The store moved from Gleneden Beach last month
and they make their own truffles on the premises. An eChocolateNYC good luck tip of the cap to the shops owners Bryan and Sherry Fitch.
Maggie Achorn a chocolatier from Maine found she had outgrown her home's kitchen when it came to operating her chocolate business. In
need of greater space she found the solution of using the kitchen at the Belfast Square Apartments a complex set up for the elderly. She
plans on offering cooking and baking classes and is interested in allowing others to use the kitchen.
August 18, 2008 - If you are a fan of Cadbury's Wispa bar mark down October 6th as that's the day the Wispa will rejoin the Cadbury
lineup. After a tremendous amount of public relations pressure was put on the company by fans of the bar the company brought it back for a
seven week trial run last year. Twenty million bars were bought and Cadbury was convinced to bring the bar back. The pressure was mostly
due to social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace where fans were able to organize and let the company know how much they
missed the bar. If you're in Aberdeen, South Dakota after August 29th drop by the Palm Garden Cafe & Chocolate Shoppe located at 602
S. Third St. The grand opening is the 28th. The upstairs has a sports museum while the downstairs has a restaurant and a chocolate shop
that will sell chocolates as well as pastries. The WOW factor runs strong in the next story which has an accompanying video. Walt Lewis
of Huntington, West Virginia, recently started a company CHIAMMAYA Custom Crafted Chocolate. His chocolate has only four ingredients
cocoa, almonds, cinnamon and sugar. He'll adjust the chocolate, which looks to us more like cooking than eating chocolate, to satisfy your
tastes. What makes this story ultra WOW is that his "factory" is built into a U Haul It truck which allows him to drive around, good advertising
we suppose, and let his customers see how their chocolate is made. WIII TV has a nice piece on The Gourmet Brownie Kitchen in Texas.
Their brownies look great. Dec. 21, 2007 was the last day of operation for the Moirs Chocolate Factory in Dartmouth, Canada. The factory
produced the Pot Of Gold chocolate bar among other items. The Pot of Gold was started in 1928 but the company started in 1815 when
James Moir first began producing confectionery products. Hershey took over the plant 20 years ago. Six hundred workers lost their jobs at
the time but a job retraining center across from the plant is helping many acquire new skills so that they can find employment. The people
of Tasmania may owe the Mars chocolate company a big thank you. Mars has announced a 3 year four million Australian Dollars deal to
sponsor an AFL ( Australian Football League ) team in Tasmania. This sponsorship may allow the area to finally get a team. Hershey is a
couple of weeks into its new television campaign. The spot was put together by Wallace and Gromit creators Aardman Animations. It has
animated chocolate characters happily interacting while the Modern English song " I'll Melt With You" plays in the background. The Sydney
Morning Herald has an interesting article about Xocai Chocolate. According to the article the companies owners, Jeanette and Martin
Brooks , have had legal problems in the past from setting up businesses that are run as pyramid selling operations. The article states "
The Brookses' creditors included the US and Canadian tax offices, business partners and angry distributors of a previous product, the
Phoenix Fiber Cookie, which was withdrawn after the US Food and Drug Administration found that false health claims were being made for
it. " Xocai chocolate is a mix of the acai berry and cocoa and the company claims it provides many healthful benefits. The Belgian Royal
Association of the Chocolate, Praline, Biscuits and Sugar Confectionery Industry has developed a set of guidelines that must be followed
for chocolate to be labeled as "Belgian Chocolate". The phrase itself has become a definition for high quality chocolate and the
Association is afraid that it will become a generic term. Although the beans would not have to be ground in Belgium to qualify the
processing and moulding of the chocolate would have to be. The Association would also like products that are partially Belgian chocolate
to be labeled as "Made with Belgian chocolate" so that it is somewhat apparent the whole product was not made in Belgium. The definition
is not legally binding which is a shame, we believe anything that helps to inform a consumer is a good thing, it should still go a long way in
clarifying some of the confusion currently in the marketplace. We kind of figured this was going to happen. The Danish firm AAK, makers
of many vegetable oil products, has seen a sharp increase for their vegetable oil based cocoa butter equivalents. With cocoa beans
constantly trending higher the demand for cocoa butter equivalents will only increase as chocolate manufacturers look to lower costs.
August 14, 2008 - Enjoy Chocolate Foods has released a new product, boomChocoboom bars. The bars are the first dairy, nut and soy
free chocolate bars which makes them edible for those with allergies. The bars will be available nationally in Whole Foods markets. You
can read the Press Release here.
August 13, 2008 - Once again Deborah Markus of BellaOnline has a useful article. In this one she reviews King Arthur Flour Chocolate
Cake Mix.For the record she likes the product. Swiss chocolatiers, Barry Callebaut have followed up the selling of consumer oriented
chocolate businesses in Senegal and the Ivory Coast by selling off their 74.7% share in Chococam a Cameroon based consumer goods
business. The divesting of these firms allows Barry Callebaut to focus on cocoa bean sourcing and processing. If you happen to be in
Maine this Friday night you might want to drop by St. George's Episcopal Church, 407 York Street, York Harbor, Maine. From 6:00 - 8:30 PM
they will be holding their annual Chocolate Fest with the proceeds going to help the library. Local merchants will be providing the chocolate
so you might want to use this as an opportunity to explore what is available in the region.
August 11, 2008 - As borders disappear and food from all nations becomes readily available consumers have to think more about their
food safety. California's department of public health has warned consumers not to eat Huevines Confitados Sabor chocolate products,
produced in Mexico by Confitados Finos Del Bosque. The chocolates tested as having twice the allowable level of lead under California
law. Meanwhile brown candies made by Kee Wee Hup Kee Food Manufacture of Malaysia were found to have seven times the allowable
level of lead. Natra the chocolate company from Spain is introducing a new chocolate snack for the private label market. It will have a
chocolate coated biscuit base and a cream strip on top mixed with either muesli, red fruits or cereals. Deborah Markus the BellaOnline
chocolate editor has a review of Ghirardelli Brownie Mix which is interesting reading for the average brownie maker. Swiss chocolate
makers Barry Callebaut are expanding their operations in India by opening their first chocolate academy in India. India along with China is
seen as one of the big growth opportunities in the chocolate universe in the next few years with projected double digit growth. Callebaut will
be opening two other academies this year bringing the total to twelve worldwide. The academies give Callebaut an opening into markets
as they work along side local chocolate artisans. A new report out of Europe finds that the growth of premium chocolate has led to an
interesting situation. As consumers shift over to high end chocolate sales my weight are decreasing but the value of the sales are
increasing owing to the higher prices. With its demerger from the soft drink side of the business complete Cadbury is on its own as a
confectionery company. Even with good profit results from the first quarter Cadbury is planning on further cost cutting to keep costs down.
With increases in commodity prices companies can only cut in narrow areas to keep retail prices steady. Filippo Cerulli, the new president
of CAOBISCO talks to ConfectioneryNews.com and the head of this European trade group has a lot of interesting information to impart
about the current market in Europe and how regional as opposed to national solutions are sought for problems in supply. The European
Commission has given the go ahead for the Wrigley Mars merger. The Commission found since Wrigley was primarily gum and Mars was
primarily chocolate there wasn't a significant overlap in the two companies.
August 05, 2008 - Theobroma Chocolate Lounge, a branch of the Australian firm, is opening at 1 Utama, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The
Boston Globe has a neat article about the chocolate scene in New York City. They cover Chocolate Bar and The Chocolate Room. Uniq will
shut down its Riviera Desserts operation at Paignton , Devon , England. The factory produces trifles and chocolate pudding and will cost
350 workers their jobs. The companies products will continue to be produced and sold at Marks and Spencer. As wonderful as chocolate
is every once and awhile the craving can get you into serious trouble. In England a driver for the Foreign Office pulled over to buy a
chocolate bar, allowing thieves to hijack his truck and make off with close to five million dollars worth of blank passports. The government
is worried the passports may fall into the hands of terrorists or criminals.
