Chocolate, or cocoa, is a food made from roasted and ground cacao seed kernels that is available as a liquid, solid, or paste, either on its own or as a flavoring agent in other foods. Cacao has been consumed in some form for at least 5,300 years starting with the Mayo-Chinchipe culture in what is present-day Ecuador. Later Mesoamerican civilizations also consumed chocolate beverages before being introduced to Europe in the 16th century.
The cocoa bean or simply cocoa, also called cacao, is the dried and fully fermented seed of Theobroma cacao, the cacao tree, from which cocoa solids and cocoa butter can be extracted. Cocoa trees are native to the Amazon rainforest. They are the basis of chocolate and Mesoamerican foods including tejate, an indigenous Mexican drink.
The Hershey Company, often called just Hershey or Hershey's, is an American multinational confectionery company headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania, United States, which is also home to Hersheypark and Hershey's Chocolate World. The Hershey Company is one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in the world; it also manufactures baked products, such as cookies and cakes, and sells beverages like milkshakes, as well as other products. The Hershey Company was founded by Milton S. Hershey in 1894 as the Hershey Chocolate Company, originally established as a subsidiary of his Lancaster Caramel Company. The Hershey Trust Company owns a minority stake but retains a majority of the voting power within the company.
Mars, Incorporated is an American multinational manufacturer of confectionery, pet food, and other food products and a provider of animal care services, with US$45 billion in annual sales in 2022; that year Forbes ranked the company as the fourth-largest privately held company in the United States. Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, the company is entirely owned by the Mars family. Mars operates in four business segments around the world: Mars Wrigley Confectionery, Petcare, Food, and MARS Edge, the company's life sciences division.
Chupa Chups is a Spanish brand of lollipop and confectionery company found in over 150 countries around the world. The brand was founded in 1958 by Enric Bernat, and is currently owned by the Italian-Dutch company Perfetti Van Melle. The name of the brand comes from the Spanish verb chupar, meaning "to suck". Similar confections are known as lollipops or suckers in English.
Godiva Chocolatier is a Belgian-based international chocolate maker which is owned by Turkish conglomerate Yıldız Holding.
Grupo Arcor is an Argentine food company specialized in confectionery. The firm was founded on July 5, 1951 in the city of Arroyito, Córdoba. It specializes in the production of foodstuff, sugar and chocolate confectionery, cookies and ice cream in 39 industrial plants throughout Latin America. It is the world's top producer of hard candies and the tenth-biggest confectionery manufacturer overall. In Argentina, Arcor is the largest producer of processed foods, and its products are exported to over 120 countries.
Grupo Bimbo, S.A.B. de C.V. is a Mexican multinational food company with a presence in over 33 countries located in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa. It has an annual sales volume of 15 billion dollars and is listed on the Mexican Stock Exchange with the ticker BIMBO.
Wilbur Chocolate is one of four brands manufactured by Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate North America. Most of the Wilbur brand products were produced in plants chocolate manufacturing company located in Lititz, Pennsylvania.
Callebaut is a Belgian coverture chocolate manufacturer owned by the Barry Callebaut group and based in Belgium. It was founded in 1911 by Octaaf Callebaut in Belgium. Coverture chocolate contains high amounts of cocoa butter and is often used by gourmet and culinary professionals. Many professionals who use Callebaut coverture chocolate use it for its workability and consistent taste.
Cola Cao is a sugary chocolate drink with vitamins and minerals that originated in Spain and is now produced and marketed in several countries. The brand is owned by the Barcelona-based company Idilia Foods.
Côte d'Or is a producer of Belgian chocolate, owned by Mondelez International. Côte d'Or was founded in 1883 by Charles Neuhaus in Schaerbeek, Belgium, a chocolate manufacturer who used the name "Côte d'Or" referring to the old name of contemporary Ghana, the source of many of the cacao beans used in chocolate manufacturing.
Guylian is a Belgian chocolate brand and manufacturer best known for its seashell shaped pralines. The company was founded in 1958 in Sint-Niklaas, Belgium by Guy Foubert and is now owned by the South Korean company Lotte Confectionery.
Barry Callebaut AG is a Swiss-Belgian cocoa processor and chocolate manufacturer, with an average annual production of 2.3 million tonnes of cocoa & chocolate . It was created in 1996 through the merging of the French company Cacao Barry and the Belgian chocolate producer Callebaut. It is currently based in Zürich, Switzerland, and operates in over 30 countries worldwide. It was created in its present form by Klaus Johann Jacobs.
Baker's Chocolate is a brand name for the line of baking chocolates owned by Kraft Heinz. Products include a variety of bulk chocolates, including white and unsweetened, and sweetened coconut flakes. It is one of the largest national brands of chocolate in the United States. The company was originally named Walter Baker & Company.
Fair trade cocoa is an agricultural product harvested from a cocoa tree using a certified process which is followed by cocoa farmers, buyers, and chocolate manufacturers, and is designed to create sustainable incomes for farmers and their families. Companies that use fair trade certified cocoa to create products can advertise that they are contributing to social, economic, and environmental sustainability in agriculture.
Aalst Chocolate is a manufacturer of industrial chocolates and compounds, gourmet chocolates and related products. It was established in 2003 in Singapore, by Richard Lee and Connie Kwan, who are currently Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer respectively. They are the first chocolate factory to be fully owned and managed by Singaporeans.
Chocolat Jacques is a Belgian firm that was founded in Verviers in 1896, by Antoine Jacques (1858-1929). Production was later moved to Bruges and Eupen in the east of Belgium, where its headquarters have also been located since 1923.
Industrias de Aceite S.A. doing business as Alicorp Bolivia or FINO, is a Bolivian consumer food and personal care products company that specializes in food and cooking oils, particularly soybean-derived oils. It is a wholly owned international subsidiary of Alicorp. Industrias de Aceite is headquartered in Santa Cruz with a large plant located in Warnes. It also has a plant in Cochabamba. It is known for its FINO brand oils and spreads.
SCHOKINAG-Schokolade-Industrie GmbH (SCHOKINAG) is a food company based in Mannheim. It is considered to be one of the leading chocolate manufacturers in Europe. Founded in 1923 as a family business, SCHOKINAG has been under the ownership of the Malaysian company Guan Chong Berhad (GCB) since 2020.
