Researchers from the prestigious ETH Zurich have teamed up with two Swiss companies to produce a new variety of chocolate that uses almost the entire cocoa pod, in order to produce an equally delicious, but healthier and more responsible version.
Chocolate has been one of the most coveted confections on the planet since the 17th century, when European aristocracy fell in love with the delicate bitterness of cocoa derivatives. With the industrial revolution, this exceptional product gradually became more popular until it became a true dessert superstar, and even a true cultural icon. Today, each French person consumes more than 7 kg per year!
But this love for brown gold is not without consequences. Particularly because the most popular forms of chocolate contain a relatively high amount of sugar and saturated fat and cocoa cultivation poses serious socio-economic and environmental problems. This is where the troops from ETH Zurich come in, a prestigious research institute… Swiss, obviously. With the startup Koa specializing in responsible cocoa cultivation and the chocolatier Felchlin, they have developed a new process which allows make maximum profit from the fruits of the cocoa tree.
A new definition of “100%” chocolate
Traditionally, chocolate only uses cocoa beans, the whitish seeds trapped in the heart of the pods. These are fermented, roasted, then ground to produce a paste from which the famous cocoa butter is then extracted. We then mix the dough, butter and sugar to obtain the finished product.
However, researchers discovered that it was also possible touse the shell and the fleshy part of the pod, called endocarp. By grinding these elements into a fine powder before mixing it with the pulp of the fruit, they obtained a gelatinous substance which they soberly named “ cocoa jelly “. It turns out that this new derivative is extremely sweet, so much so that it can replace powdered sugar in the finished product.
After numerous tests which made it possible to find the right dosage, they obtained an alternative chocolate very close to conventional dark chocolate in terms of taste and texture… and also better for health ! In fact, the team’s analyzes showed that it was 25% higher in fiber and that it contained a third less saturated fat.
“ Fiber is valuable at the physiological level, because it naturally regulates intestinal activity and prevents blood sugar levels from rising too quickly when we consume sugary products like chocolate. Saturated fats, for their part, are linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease “, explains Kim Mishra, lead author of the study.
Promoting the product, a crucial issue
Beyond these nutritional benefits, this chocolate also presents another potential advantage, this time for producers. Today, between 60 and 70% of the world’s cocoa comes from two countries: Ghana, and especially Ivory Coast, which is responsible for around 40% of world production alone. The country’s economy relies largely on this industry; but as is often the case in the field of agriculture, producers have all the difficulty in the world to make a decent living from it. Many farmers live in great poverty, and the volatility of the cocoa market does not help the situation.
One solution could therefore be to help them make their product profitable. Today, only cocoa beans have value on the market; but this 2.0 chocolate could be a game changer. “ Farmers could sell the beans, but also extract the juice from the pulp and grind the endocarp to generate additional income ” suggests Mishra.
Unfortunately, this would also involve rethinking the entire production chain, and therefore agreeing to significant investments which are likely to dissuade operators and manufacturers. So don’t expect your favorite chocolatier to start offering “full fruit” chocolate in the near future. But the approach remains promising, and it will be interesting to see if it can be applied to other everyday products.
The text of the study is available here.
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