Dark Chocolate vs. Milk Chocolate which is better for you?

Many individuals have inquired as what is the differences in Dark Chocolate and Milk Chocolate

All Go Africa^® products will always use Dark Chocolate and contain at least 70% cacao were applicable.

The Net – Net, is in the. U.S. Milk chocolate is the most popular type of chocolate in the United States.  To be marketed as milk chocolate, a product must contain at least 10 percent chocolate liquor, at least 3.39 percent milkfat, and at least 12 percent milk solids.

Thus, if you are consuming Milk Chocolate, you are basically consuming mostly sugar.

Dark chocolate (also known as black chocolate  or plain chocolate) is a form of chocolate which is made from cocoa butter instead of milk-based butter like milk chocolate, and contains a higher percentage of cocoa. Government and industry standards of what products may be labeled “dark chocolate” vary by country and market.

Dark chocolate contains antioxidants, such as polyphenols, and is relatively low in sugar. It has a reputation as a healthier alternative to other types of chocolate, such as milk chocolate. Dark chocolate has been identified as a potential “superfood”. This has helped lead to a global increase in demand for dark chocolate

Milk chocolate is solid chocolate made with milk, in the form of milk powder, liquid milk, or condensed milk, added. In 1875, Swiss confectioner Daniel Peter, in cooperation with his neighbour Henri Nestlé in Vevey, developed the first solid milk chocolate using condensed milk. The bar was named “Gala Peter”, combining the Greek word for “milk” and his name. A German company Jordan & Timaeus in Dresden, Saxony had already invented milk chocolate in 1839; hitherto it had only been available as a drink The US Government requires a 10% concentration of chocolate liquor. EU regulations specify a minimum of 25% cocoa solids. However, an agreement was reached in 2000 that allowed what by exception from these regulations is called “milk chocolate” in the UK, Ireland, and Malta, containing only 20% cocoa solids, to be traded as “family milk chocolate” elsewhere in the European Union.

Chocolate liquor (cocoa liquor) is pure cocoa mass in solid or semi-solid form. Like the cocoa beans (nibs) from which it is produced, it contains both cocoa solids and cocoa butter in roughly equal proportion.

It is produced from cocoa beans that have been fermented, dried, roasted, and separated from their skins. The beans are ground into cocoa mass (cocoa paste). The mass is melted to become the liquor, and the liquor is either separated into cocoa solids and cocoa butter, or cooled and molded into blocks of raw chocolate. Its main use (often with additional cocoa butter) is in making chocolate.

The name liquor is used not in the sense of a distilled, alcoholic substance, but rather the older meaning of the word, meaning ‘liquid’ or ‘fluid’.

Chocolate liquor contains roughly 53 percent cocoa butter (fat), about 17 percent carbohydrates, 11 percent protein, 6 percent tannins, and 1.5 percent theobromine.

Chocolate Production

To make 1 kg (2.2 lb) of chocolate, about 300 to 600 beans are processed, depending on the desired cocoa content. In a factory, the beans are roasted. Next, they are cracked and then deshelled by a “winnower”. The resulting pieces of beans are called nibs. They are sometimes sold in small packages at specialty stores and markets to be used in cooking, snacking, and chocolate dishes. Since nibs are directly from the cocoa tree, they contain high amounts of theobromine. Most nibs are ground, using various methods, into a thick, creamy paste, known as chocolate liquor or cocoa paste. This “liquor” is then further processed into chocolate by mixing in (more) cocoa butter and sugar (and sometimes vanilla and lecithin as an emulsifier), and then refined, conched and tempered. Alternatively, it can be separated into cocoa powder and cocoa butter using a hydraulic press or the Broma process. This process produces around 50% cocoa butter and 50% cocoa powder. cocoa powder has a fat content around 10–12%. Cocoa butter is used in chocolate bar manufacture, other confectionery, soaps, and cosmetics.

Treating with alkali produces Dutch-process cocoa powder, which is less acidic, darker, and more mellow in flavor than what is generally available in most of the world. Regular (nonalkalized) cocoa is acidic, so when cocoa is treated with an alkaline ingredient, generally potassium carbonate, the pH increases. This process can be done at various stages during manufacturing, including during nib treatment, liquor treatment, or press cake treatment.

Another process that helps develop the flavor is roasting, which can be done on the whole bean before shelling or on the nib after shelling. The time and temperature of the roast affect the result: A “low roast” produces a more acid, aromatic flavor, while a high roast gives a more intense, bitter flavor lacking complex flavor notes