Monday 15 December 2008

10 NEW TRENDS IN CHOCOLATE,

Life is tough out there for all of us. Some people consider it frivolous of me to keep on blogging about chocolate. Well for lots of us, both those who produce chocolate and those that eat chocolate, life is still has some joys. Christmas may not see turkey on our tables, but there will be chicken at least and chocolate pudding at the end.With glasses of home-made wine. It is going to be sustainable years for chocolatiers from 2009 on. Chocolate trends that have begun in a small way during the last decade are favourably gathering momentum.

1) Chocolate is being less regarded as a snack. It is now being respected as a food. There is no need to elaborate of the nutritional and health benefits of chocolate, they are already well known. Large companies like Nestle and Mars have very responsibly begun to move with these trends. In time manufacturers will make demands on suppliers to provide types of chocolate that are aimed at the "chocolate-food" market.

2)Artisans are becoming a major force in chocolate. Artisans with "there are more horizons" atitude are leading the trend rather than those who are mired down by traditional and dour thinking. Artisans in the US are taking the lead. The grouping of Art Pollard, Shawn Askinosie, Alex Whitmore(Taza)DeVries, Alan McClure(Patric) will undoubtly grow in numbers and in setting some exciting trends. Surely Tim Childs, Pierre Marcolini, Ramon Morato(Chocovic),Michael Cluize among others will soon join the ranks. I hope they let Clothilde Dusoulier join too for being, if not a pure artisan, the best looking chocolatier in the world.

Here in Indonesia there are a small group of artisans producing some great chocolate too. We have vast potential to grow in numbers and skills using our own resources.

3)The focus of the cocoa BEAN will shift from the Americas and Africa to South East Asia. And I hope to even parts of north Australia.From Vietnam to the Northern Territory of Australia to Vanuatu,lies vast unexplored resources for great cocoa. There are no less than half a million plantations within this area. The soils and climate of this region undoubtly produce some of the best flavours and sensations waiting to be discovered. The adventure of discovery of cocoa is endless. I hope the artisans from the United States, and Europe, with pack their rucksacks and come here. Let me assure you that in this area there are no adverse issues on Fair Trade nor Child Labour. You can go searching with a clear conscience.

4)Premium Chocolate segment is growing. Though now only 10 percent of the total chocolate market and about $12.9billion in value, Nestle estimates that it will soon grow to $14 billion. Growth of premium chocolate in 2007 over 2006 was 18%. Premium chocolate is steadily encroaching on and influencing the mainstream. In effect this means that mainstream will have to seeks news ways to convert chocolate from a snack, often frivolous, to a god healthy food. The Food Services industry will also be demanding not just great taste, but also great goodness and suitable credentials.

5)That Belgian chocolate is the best in the world will be relegated to the book of myths. The widely held belief, particularly among the Swiss, that Swiss chocolate is inimitable will be of no consequence. European chocolate with have to revent itself with a promise of "adventure" in every bite.Verona is sitting too contentedly on its laurels and Lindt has caught the "drift" and making some tentative forays.Spain is the exception and continues to show flair and passion.Having brought chocolate to Europe in the 16th century they have the responsibility to revent chocolate for the rest of Europe.

New Tree says it's Belgian Chocolate. Thought it has broken away from the dour traditions of Belgium Chocolate and have launched a very innovative range that may point the way to the future of marketing and even pricing chocolate.

6)The next artisans will be adventurers. They may be Asian or others. For Asians the good beans, exciting beans, are in their own backyard. The experienced and adventurous Americans, must expand their horizons. Some merely have scratched the surface in Asia-Pacific.But pottering around is not real adventure and often results in inaccuracies or simply with convenient stories.But at least it has been a tentative poke into the unknown.

7) Innovation, some of which was seen at the recent HIE show in Paris, is the next big word in chocolate after Adventure. Natra, of Spain has made some early entry inby adding Omega-3 and fibre. Conveniently Natra owns 50% stake in the Natraceutical Group. There is a promise of more to come, not just in health aspects but also in tastes and flavour surprises, or all three.

8)Should cocoa continue to be classified as Criollo, Forestero and Trinitano? Or should we start classifying cocoa,rationally, according to origin? Is Criollo still to be consdered as the superior bean? The debate will begin and my guess is that we go will go the wine way.

9)Mainstream chocolate will become smaller, chunkier,milk rich or cocoa rich, healthy of course, nutritious and need-occassion targeted(as opposed to youth-occassion targeted).Natra-Natraceutical type alliances may help. Appeal not just to the mouth but also to the intellect.

10)It will all begin at the farm.With happy,coco-wise, chocolate-wise,farmers. Farmers admit to being somewhat intimidated by the "big guys".So this is precisely i where farmers,artisans, the small bakers, horeca,home industries,smaller processors and manufacturers and others can all work towards interesting, involved and personalised relationships.

11)There is one more. Start a trend. Get your children interested in becoming professional chocolatiers rather than lawyers and bankers.There could be money in it as well as the immense possibility of them growing up to be good people too.

Wednesday 3 December 2008

CHOCOLATE 2008

This year was really a year of outstanding Chocolate events. New artisans joined the community. New innovations appeared on the shelves. New beans were discovered.New plantations, in new territories, began their first yields. New findings on how good chocolate is for you were tentatively revealed. Athletes at the Olympic Games, Beijing, were fuelled by chocolate. Chocolate Boutiques opened in the thousands. Experts claimed that chocolate would remain immune to the global crisis.These Blogs have been recording the progress since June 2008.

It seemed as if a lot of territory had been covered since the beginning of the year. But more arrived. Vosages launched NAGA which incredibly combined, believe it or not, Indian Curry, coconut and mik chocolate. It wasn't the only bar Vosages launched. There was also among others Mo Bacon Bar, Enchanted Mushroom,Habana.They were I was told, received with great enthusasism by chocolate aficionados.A 120 gm bar sold for around $8.00.Pity the CEO of Ford, GM and Chrysler wont not be able to afford it.



Here in Indonesia, we experimented, successfully, with chocolate banana and cassava crisps, chocolate tempe wafers, chocolate tofu, with ingredients added on like salt, cardamon,green hot chilli,pepper,palm sugar,fragrant cloves and so on. We also tried chocolate with asparagus and mushroom. And during a school function served anchovie paste on disks of white chocolate(served ice cold). Our strategy has been two fold: first,chocolate is not for flavouring, it is the main ingredient. Second, use or fond the best ingredients available locally.

Dommique Persoone, who owns one of the three chocolate shops, to be awarded Michelin Stars,calls himself a shock-o-latier. I will leave it at just that.

In Tawau, a little town on the island of Borneo(Malaysia) has experimented chocolate powder with Chinese cooking: chocolate noodles, chocolate fried prawns, vegetable stir fry with chocolate and so on.I have been invited to sample more and readers of this Blog can read about my adventures in Tawau after the New Year.

Actually none of this should come as a surprise. Chocolate composed of the five "precious tastes", Sweet, Bitter, Astringent, Umami and Sweet would logically be able to combine universally. The Chinese, a thousand years or more developed the Five Spices powder. The magical powder that would render the blandest of dishes into a treat for the palate.The Punjabis, in India, have their own version. On the other side of the world, 3000 years ago, the The Olmecs discovered chocolate.

Another movement recognised in 2008,was change in the classifying of the chocolate "target market." It has been a tradition is assume that the main consumers of chocolate were teenagers or "youth". Many advertising agencies cling to this belief because it is easy to pander to.Times are changing. Chocolate eaters cannot be classified by demographics or psychographics. They are merely chocolate lovers enthralled by the adventure, taste and experience of chocolate.

Those loosely termed as "youth" has moved away from "chocolate". They are different from the simpler youth of say, 15 years ago. You don't find the youth of today stalking up and down the confectionery aisles of hypermarkets. In fact you hardly find "youth" in hypermarkets or supermarkets. These are not the places they hang out.

The chocolate consumer may ten years old or a hundred and ten.They take great pleasure in the discovery and enjoyment of chocolate and occasionally sharing it. They are not enticed by swirling, streams of chocolate on television. Nor do they connect with gambolling about the countryside or occupy themselves in pretty and inane pursuits that advertising agencies think are "youth fun." Chocolate has become an intellectual adventure through the medium of taste.Many are mysterious journeys to be indulged in.