Chocolate Essay

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Index Page
1. Introduction 3
2. What is chocolate? 3
3. Origins of chocolate
3.1 The Mayan civilisation 3
3.2 Cocoa in the Aztec Empire 4
3.3 Introduction of cocoa to Spain 5
3.4 The spread of chocolate across Europe 5
3.5 Chocolate Houses in London 6
4. Who and Where? 6
5. From the plantations to the store
5.1 Cocoa Pods and Beans 6
5.2 Cocoa bean processing 7
5.3 Chocolate making 7
6. The real price of chocolate 8
7. Conclusion 9
References 11

1. Introduction
Everyone knows of the heavenly affordable luxury that is a chocolate bar. However does anyone know of its history, where it came from, who makes them and what the actual cost of chocolate is? And this most asked question: is chocolate good for the world? In the following report will enlighten those who have ever asked the previous questions.
2. What is chocolate?
The earliest traces of chocolate were traced back to the ancient Mayan and Aztec civilisations in Central America. They called it ‘Theobama cacao’ (meaning ‘food of the gods’) and they prized it for centuries. The Central American Mayan Indians were the first enjoyed a spicy drink called ‘chocolatl’, which were made from roasted cocoa beans. The cocoa beans were also used as currency by the Aztec civilisation.
Cocoa was introduced to the Spaniards, by the Aztecs namely Montezuma, who took it back to Europe. It is said that Christopher Columbus brought the first cocoa beans after his fourth visit to the ‘New World’ between 1502 and 1504. However the cocoa beans took a back seat to the far more exciting treasures that was on board his ship, and the cocoa beans were eventually forgotten.
Spanish Conquistador Do...

... middle of paper ...

...4 April 2014]

Fitday. (2014) 6 Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate. [Online]
Available from: http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/6-health-benefits-of-dark-chocolate.html
[Accessed: 5 April 2014]

The story of chocolate. (2014) Economics. [Online]
Available from: http://thestoryofchocolate.com/Who/content.cfm?ItemNumber=3450&navItemNumber=3481
Accessed: 5 April 2014

Cadbury. (2014) Discovering Chocolate, photograph, viewed 2 April 2014,
Yahoo Finance. (2013) The Real Cost of a Chocolate Bar, photograph, viewed 4 April 2014,

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