Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Mars Capitulates on Chocolate Changes
I had missed this, but according to Slashfood, Mars has pledged that it will not change the formulation of its chocolate to use vegetable fat instead of cocoa butter. Here's an AP story on the topic. According to the story, as recently as 2000, Mars backed allowing up to 5 percent of fat in chocolate to be the vegetable variety. European companies are already allowed to do this, which has to be a first - the US leads the way in respect for ingredients.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Mars Uses Animal Products in Chocolate
According to Reuters, the Mars company, one of the world's biggest chocolate makers, apologized for a previous decision to start using rennet, an enzyme from calf stomaches, that the story says "is used in traditional cheese and chocolate making." Lots of vegetarians didn't like hearing this.
But forget about them for a moment. So far as I know, chocolate making is by definition supposed to involve cocoa solids, cocoa butter, milk or milk powder, and sugar. Since when do you add rennet as you do with cheese? Are they trying to create curds from the milk to reduce the amount of cocoa they need? Why are companies always trying to find ways to cut corners? How about doing something well, for heaven's sake? At least the company received 6,000 emails and phone calls after the initial announcement that it would make the change.
But forget about them for a moment. So far as I know, chocolate making is by definition supposed to involve cocoa solids, cocoa butter, milk or milk powder, and sugar. Since when do you add rennet as you do with cheese? Are they trying to create curds from the milk to reduce the amount of cocoa they need? Why are companies always trying to find ways to cut corners? How about doing something well, for heaven's sake? At least the company received 6,000 emails and phone calls after the initial announcement that it would make the change.
