25 "sweet" facts about chocolate

Every year, on July 11, sweet lovers celebrate World Chocolate Day (World Chocolate Day). Chocolate Day was invented and first held by the French in 1995.

Chocolate is undoubtedly one of the best inventions on earth. Milk, black, white — everyone will find it to their taste. We eat chocolate when we are hungry, we eat it when we are depressed, we eat it when we feel good. Chocolate is an integral part of our life, but you can bet that there are many interesting facts that you never suspected.

1. Cocoa trees can live up to 200 years, but they bear fruit for only 25 years.

2. Every year, Americans eat 1 billion kilograms of sweets. Half of them are accounted for by chocolate.

3. Chocolate is full of antioxidants, especially dark chocolate, which is full of flavonoids (antioxidants that help prevent the development of cardiovascular diseases).

4. About 40% of all almonds and 20% of all peanuts produced in the world are supplied for chocolate products.

5. According to new scientific research, if you eat chocolate, you can prevent the occurrence of complications during pregnancy.

6. The largest chocolate bar weighed 5.8 tons and was made at the Thorntons plc factory in the UK on October 7, 2011.

7. In the famous movie "Psycho", Alfred Hitchcock used Bosco chocolate syrup for scenes with blood.

8. The word "chocolate" probably comes from the word "xocolatl", which in the Nahuatl language meant"bitter water".

9.400 cocoa beans are required to produce 450 grams of chocolate.

10. Studies have shown that dark chocolate improves memory, attention, reaction time and problem-solving skills by increasing blood flow to the brain. In addition, dark chocolate improves vision in conditions of poor visibility (for example, during rain) and helps to reduce blood pressure.

11. The Aztecs believed that cocoa seeds were a gift from the God of Wisdom, they were so significant that they were used as money for some time.

12. The largest and oldest chocolate factory in the United States-Hershey's. It was founded by Milton Hershey in 1894 and produces more than a billion kilograms of chocolate annually.

13. The most valuable chocolate bar in the world is considered to be Cadburry, which has already turned 100 years old. It belonged to Captain Robert Scott on his first expedition to the Antarctic. The chocolate bar, which was never touched by Scott, was sold at auction in London in 2001 for $ 687.

14. Technically, white chocolate is not chocolate at all. It does not contain cocoa.

15. In 2012, Switzerland had the highest per capita consumption of chocolate in the world. Each Swiss ate an average of 11.8 kilograms of chocolate per year. Americans were only in 15th place, eating 5.45 kilograms of chocolate per year.

16. Cocoa has been growing on our planet for millions of years. It is probably one of the oldest natural food sources.

17. Ivory Coast is currently considered the world's leading producer of cocoa beans. About 37% of all cocoa stocks come from here.

18. The first chocolate made in factory conditions was produced in Barcelona in 1780.

19. Chocolate was included in the diet of soldiers during the Second World War. According to the instructions from above, its taste has been modified so that it is "slightly tastier than boiled potatoes". All this is so that the soldiers do not eat it too quickly.

20. Technically, the main ingredient of chocolate is cocoa beans( cacao beans), but throughout the industry they are known as "cocoa beans", from the word "cocoa" — cocoa.

21. Chocolate contains phenylethylamine-an amino acid that has an aphrodisiac effect and is able to eliminate hangover syndrome.

22. The US Army, together with Hershey's, developed a new formula that improved the heat resistance of chocolate so that it could be taken with you during Operation Desert Storm. Chocolate bars made using this technology remained solid even at a temperature of 60 degrees Celsius.

23. One piece of chocolate will provide you with enough energy to walk 45 meters.

24. In Belgium, 17,000 people are engaged in the production of chocolate.

25.The first chocolate bar intended for general consumption was made at Fry's chocolate factory, located in Bristol in 1847.