Chocolate Mystery decrypted

Researcher: Deciphered aroma secret in chocolate production

07/13/2014

Whether children or adults: Most people love chocolate. Researchers have now succeeded in finding out how the typical chocolate aroma develops. Secrets are cracked again and again around the seductive chocolate, including in terms of health.

Foundation for the typical chocolate flavor
Researchers in Saarbrücken have succeeded in deciphering a secret about chocolate production. According to a report by the news agency "dpa", scientists from Saarland University found out in laboratory tests "how the natural fermentation of cocoa beans lays the foundation for the typical chocolate flavor", as the professor for systems biotechnology, Christoph Wittmann, reported.

Every German eats an average of ten kilograms of chocolate a year
According to the information, every German consumes around ten kilograms of chocolate on average per year. Crucial to the aroma is "the quality of the processing". The first step is the fermentation right after the harvest. The farmers let the cocoa beans and pulp, covered with banana leaves, ferment in the sun. Together with researchers in Lausanne in Switzerland, Wittmann's team has found out, as yeast, lactic and acetic acid bacteria work together to form acetate, the key substance for the subsequent flavor development.

Bacteria need lactic acid and ethanol
The acetic acid bacteria need to lactic acid and the alcohol ethanol. These are provided in microbiological communities of lactic acid bacteria and yeasts. „Missing a certain substance or even one of the microorganisms, the desired aroma can not develop“, so Wittmann. He further explained: „By using natural starter cultures containing the right combination of microorganisms, cocoa farmers could improve the yield of cocoa fermentations.“

Health promoting chocolate
To the seductive chocolate are always cracked scientific secrets, also in the field of health. For example, only a few months ago, the results of an English study by the University of Cambridge were published, in which it was found that the daily consumption of dark chocolate should reduce the risk of heart attack. In addition, according to the researchers, the risk of stroke among chocolate lovers dropped. Scientists from the universities of Bern and Zurich also recently dealt with chocolate and came to the conclusion: Black chocolate protects against stress. The researchers found that bitter chocolate has an impact on the release of stress hormones and thus protects against the negative health consequences of stress. Incidentally, chocolate was sold through pharmacies until late in the 19th century, as it was considered health-promoting. (Ad)