A legacy of cocoa craft
A legacy of cocoa craft
More than 190 years of cocoa pioneering
Cocoa drinks are consumed the world over. From Ghana to New York. From Tokyo to Paris. But that was not always the case. Cocoa used to be bitter. Difficult to transport. And immensely pricy.
In 1828, the world of chocolate changed. In Amsterdam, Casparus Van Houten tinkered with the newest technology of the time and, in doing so, invented the hydraulic cocoa press. He separated cocoa liquor from cocoa butter for the first time, revolutionising cocoa. From that moment on, cocoa powder was relatively inexpensive to make.
From bean to delicious powder
The quest for the perfect serve
Casparus’ son Coenraad Van Houten took up the mantle and went on to perfect cocoa powder even further. After years of learning from his father, he invented the now world-famous Dutching process. By alkalising cocoa, it lost its bitter taste and became the sweet, gently-coloured substance we all know and love today.
The discovery even paved the way for the invention of the chocolate bar. It also made volume production possible and chocolates as a whole affordable.
The divine taste of cocoa, made sustainably
Van Houten works hard to put sustainability back on the menu. Through Cocoa Horizons, supervised by the Swiss Federal Foundation Authority, we are helping farmers build self-sustaining cocoa communities that protect nature and their children.