Hageland Peru 64% Bar

I've always been suspicious of the single origin cocoa bean phenomenon.  How could it possibly make a difference?  This bar might help change my mind.  It's got an unusually sweet first bite, especially for a 64% chocolate, and a clean finish free of extraneous flavor.  For once, the description on the package is accurate: "The fresh, fruity note...provides a sweeter, creamier taste than is typical of dark chocolate." The ingredients of this bar are technically vegan, but the allergy warning makes me think it is manufactured in a plant which doesn't clean its machines so thoroughly after use of non-vegan products. The company hails from the Hageland region of Belgium, but its importer is ironically right here in Hayward.  It claims to make its chocolate with "100% solar renewable energy, ca. 20% from our own solar panels," and I hope that's as true as what it says about the taste of the chocolate. 

Comments

[Fons Maex]

The allergy warning has nothing to do with the cleaning of production machines, but in a chocolate factory prime ingredients are nuts and dairy (milk powder in the milk chocolate is an example). As for allergens it sometimes comes down to only a few parts per million presence in a product to cause serious damage to somebody's health.

There is always a risk that, whatever you do in cleaning does not prevent very small contamination.

The label reads that 100% of the energy comes from RENEWABLE sources, ca. 20% coming from own solar panels.

Have a look at following website: www.kimchoc.be and find out for yourselves.

The irony of having a Belgian manufacturer with an importer in Hayward, CA escapes me?

[Fat Louie]

You noticed I really liked the bar, right? Do you know how rarely I praise wrapper descriptions for being accurate?

Viz. allergens...when a product contains no allergens on its ingredient list, any allergen warning necessarily has to do with the factory conditions. As you say in your second paragraph. So I'mma keep that as it is in the post.

Yes, you are right about the label. That was a typo on my part and will be corrected. Pleasant, positively-phrased typo-catching works best in my experience.

As for Hayward, you might want to have a look at more of the site and then it will make sense to you.

Best,
-FL