The Bitter Sweet Truth
The world is running out of chocolate says The Independent (UK). This is not good for the millions of chocoholics all over this planet salivating at the very word: chocolate. Apparently we Asians are to blame. Asians are now richer it seems and as a result have acquired the taste of chocolate and demanding it more and more. Cocoa crops are not growing at par with this extra demand; hence the acute shortage looming over our heads say chocolate making experts such as the Switzerland-based Barry Callebaut Group. Even Mars Inc is concerned - its president giving a gloom and doom scenario where there maybe a one million tonne shortage in the market by 2020.
What does this mean? It means a very bleak future for many of us. Good chocolate will be so expensive it will be like caviar (again a prognosis by a choco expert) and hence out of the reach of millions. It also will result in an influx of all those poor quality chocolates with very little cocoa in them. Without sufficient cocoa, it won't even taste like chocolate – just some sugary concoction that will add to the cellulite without giving anything in return.
And we all know that it's all in the cocoa. It is what gives that instant buzz when you place a piece of good chocolate in your mouth. For those few seconds you forget everything – another looming deadline, crotchety bosses, rebellious children, dirty dishes, malicious emails – everything. All you know is that molten delight that locks you in pure, perfect pleasure.
Moreover, the darker and hence more cocoa, the better it is for your health say scientists. Dark chocolate increases blood flow to the heart and brain (no wonder it feels so good) which means it lowers the risk of heart disease and stroke. It also reduces blood sugar and has amazing minerals like magnesium and iron. Now we know why the Aztecs were so obsessed with this stuff.
Okay so let's admit it. Some of us are addicts and just cannot imagine going through the day without at least some semblance of chocolate in our lives. Yes we hide our stash carefully under the pile of clothes in the cupboard or in some innocuous brown envelope in a forgotten suitcase. We do this to keep away the marauding hands of children and spouses who may have the same level of obsession. Yes we have passed on the addiction to the next generation and now are fighting with them over the last Fererro Rocher. Yes we shamelessly lick off every remnant of KitKat from the silvery wrapper. And yes when it's all gone we are a little masochistic and cannot help inhaling the wrapper/box that once held such exquisite happiness. We are addicts but at least we are not hypocrites. We openly praise the moistness of a chocolate brownie and applaud the richness of a mud cake. We never shy away from criticizing a chocolate chip cookie for not having bigger chunks of chocolate or from sniggering at those white chocolate fans who obviously don't have the foggiest about what's good for them.
But why this horrible crisis of this beautiful ingredient – cocoa? Unfortunately while we were drooling over Lady Godiva's favourite aphrodisiac the farmers of West Africa who grow the most of the cocoa have been going through hard times. The prices they get are paltry compared to the final price of the chocolate in the market. Extreme weather, pests, disease, political instability – all these affect the prices. Cocoa farmers are getting poorer while chocolate is getting costlier. Many are switching to growing other crops. Unless these farmers are helped through greater investment in providing fertilisers, better farming methods, generally improving the quality of their lives, the future of cocoa is extremely bitter.
Thus before we see that miserable day when all good chocolate will be a thing of the past and only cheap, synthetic imitations in its place, let us show our solidarity for those cocoa farmers. Chocoholics all over the world, unite.
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