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Before humans discovered chocolate—wild cacao trees thrived in the tropical rainforests of South America.
Native bees pollinated the trees, where the sweet pulp attracted animals like monkeys and birds, dispersing the seeds and allowing cacao to flourish undisturbed for millions of years.
Early hunter-gatherers of the new world would eventually discover these trees, which is where the history of chocolate began.
The word chocolate actually comes from the Aztec word xocolatl—meaning bitter water.
However, cocoa beans (used to make chocolate) were first domesticated in Ecuador over 5,000 years ago. It spread rapidly and became super popular in Mesoamerica and later among the Aztecs.
The Aztecs consumed chocolate in a beverage form by grinding the cocoa beans and mixing them with water full of spices. Making a foamy drink (not really the candy we know of today).
It was considered an elite drink in these early empires.
The Aztecs used chocolate as a medicinal drink, most often during religious ceremonies. They believed that it was a gift from their god Quetzalcoatl, claiming euphoria and divine connection during consumption.
They also used the drink during human sacrifice, where they would give the humans chocolate to consume before being sacrificed for the Gods.
Ancient Mayans and Aztecs also used cacao beans as a form of currency, valuing it more than gold!
This monetary system developed around the 7th century AD.
Historical records indicate that:
Cacao beans were also widely used as tribute or tax payments to the governments.
When the Spanish arrived, they had to exchange their currency, the Spanish Real, for cocoa beans.
Hernán Cortés (the Spanish explorer and conquistador) encountered chocolate when he saw Aztecs consuming the liquid in 1519.
He first found chocolate bitter and unappealing.
It wouldn’t be till 1528 that the Spanish brought back chocolate to Spain. Regular shipments to the Old World would startin 1585.
The Spanish transformed chocolate as we know it today by adding sugar to the mix, and it quickly gained popularity with the Spanish noble elite.
Chocolate would eventually spread to other sectors of European society.
The first chocolate house was opened in England in 1657, and it was sold as a fancy drink.
It quickly became a status symbol of the wealthy.
Chocolate houses were similar to coffee houses at the time, being used as social hubs for the elites to gather and talkpolitics, culture and business.
These social hubs became so popular that King Charles II tried to ban them in 1675.
Chocolate wouldn’t become mainstream for the masses until the invention of the cocoa press in 1828.
The cocoa press was invented by Coenraad van Houten. It was a hydraulic press that separated cocoa solids from cocoa butter, creating cocoa powder, the key ingredient of modern chocolate products.
With this innovation, the first chocolate bar was created in 1847 by Joseph Fry.
Fry created his chocolate bar by mixing cocoa fat back into cocoa solids, transforming it from a traditional drink into a solid product.
With later advanced machinery invented in the late 1800s, chocolate bars became cheap and easily consumed by the masses.
Chocolate would gain even more mass market appeal with the invention of milk chocolate.
Swiss chocolatier Daniel Peter is credited with inventing the first milk chocolate bar in 1875 by adding condensed milk into chocolate.
The first official milk chocolate bar product was called Gala Peter (Gala meaning milk in Greek), which was launched in 1887.
Milk chocolate wouldn’t gain mass production until Milton Hershey came onto the scene.
Hershey was a famous caramel maker that bought new chocolate making equipment for $20,000 in 1893, after seeing the possibilities in the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
His chocolates were famous for using fresh milk instead of powdered milk.
The Hershey Chocolate Company was founded in 1894.
The company introduced iconic products like the Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bar and Hershey’s Kisses.
Today, most modern cacao production is heavily concentrated in West Africa. Africa supplies about two-thirds of the world’s cacao crop.
It’s become the most affordable place to grow cocoa beans, making it a delicious treat that rich and poor alike can enjoy.
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