How is technology developing to incorporate new capabilities in small scale tempering machinery and meet the consumer demands of today? Kiran Grewal finds out more.
More and more consumers are looking to embrace the indulgent aspect of chocolate but are looking for new flavour experiences and to really embrace the origins of the ingredients. This consumer demand is leading to new methods of chocolate production, giving manufacturers an opportunity to be creative and flexible in their offerings. The institution of culinary education says with several recent offerings from industrial makers (Barry Callebaut, Nestlé, Felchlin, Lindt and Ritter) over the last year or two, they believe we will see more experimentation with ‘whole-fruit’ chocolates and other snacks sweetened not with conventional sugar, but with cacao pulp-derived sugars. These products may take a while to catch on among pastry chefs and chocolatiers due to unique flavours, differences in the chocolate’s workability and standard-of-identity issues (legal definitions of chocolate).
Though a taste for the intense flavours of dark chocolate has increased, craft chocolate makers are changing our perception of what milk chocolate can be as well, with ‘dark milk’ products that offer higher cocoa percentages, adding extra complexity to familiar creamy textures we expect to find. We will also see increased use of alternative dairy products to produce plant-based analogs for milk chocolate, seeking to deliver a similar experience with on-trend milk replacers, like oat, cashew, almond and coconut. Alternative sweeteners are traditionally more difficult to incorporate into chocolate. There may still be some space for innovation due to the interest in low-carbohydrate diets, but sugar-free chocolate remains a niche market, though Hershey’s acquisition of the popular Lily’s brand in 2021 may be a signal that alternative sweeteners will one day break into the mainstream. The messaging and science on potential ‘healthy’ aspects of chocolate — notably the antioxidant-rich polyphenols that it may contain — are still a bit murky, but expect to see a steady increase in promotion of health-and-wellness positions as well.
Innovations in tempering machinery
The purpose of tempering chocolate is to pre-crystallise the cocoa butter in it, which is important to make your chocolate ready for processing. During tempering, the cocoa butter in the chocolate takes on a stable crystalline form. This guarantees a perfect finished product with a satin gloss and a hard snap. It also makes the chocolate contract during cooling, which makes it easier to unmould.
If chocolate is simply melted (between 40 and 45 °C) and then left to cool down to a suitable working temperature, the finished product will not be glossy. If you make the small effort of bringing your chocolate to the right working temperature properly, you are guaranteed to get the desired end result. And that’s what we mean by tempering: bringing chocolate up to the right working temperature while making sure that the crystalline structure of the cocoa butter in it is stable.
So, why is fluidity so important? The fluidity of your chocolate determines the thickness of the shell and the snap of your chocolate products: the more fluid your chocolate, the thinner and crunchier your shell will be.
Using chocolate with the right fluidity also saves time: you can cast large moulds in one go with less fluid chocolate. Chocolate with a higher fluidity is better for moulds with a lot of detail, but you’ll need to fill your mould with chocolate two to three times.
“technology has adapted as the industry develops, opening automation up to manufacturers at all levels”
We ask Mike Gee, Director at Premier Forrester about what developments he is noticing in the sector, he says: “Most recently, we have seen an increase in product variation, with manufacturers using a wider range of colours and flavours, both in individual confections and across their product selection. Coincidentally, the production trend is moving away from large and inherently inflexible tempering and enrobing solutions, to smaller, more mobile systems.
“Whilst large-scale systems with high capacity have historically been the trend, this does not lend itself to the current market due to the inability to quickly change chocolate being tempered without causing extensive wastage,” he explains.
Similarly, these systems also tend to be static, which limits the production lines they can service and limits the manufacturer’s creative capability due to production restrictions. However, Mike says “smaller tempering solutions are intrinsically developed to be mobile, so as well as increasing the number of lines the machine can service, it also eliminates the need for large fixed pipework installations, which reduces residual chocolate left over – perfect for small production runs with frequent changeovers.
“Having this type of system enables manufacturers to adapt production to the ever-changing consumer demands, incorporating more colour and flavour combinations whilst generating minimal product wastage,” he says.
Automation plays a huge role in confectionery production with market leaders, but it hasn’t descended down into SMEs due to the mindset of what automation can be used for. “Currently, the industry mindset is that automation is inflexible, costly and limited, which doesn’t appeal to smaller manufacturers with greater production turnover. However, technology has adapted as the industry develops, opening automation up to manufacturers at all levels.” Adopting automation in confectionery production is of paramount importance and is key to unlocking efficiency. “Against the backdrop of high energy prices, high labour costs, and low labour availability, it’s never been more important for manufacturers to assess where automation can be built into their manufacturing strategy.”
Tempering is a technically complex process that requires highly engineered systems to ensure product consistency, repeatedly. To successfully integrate automation at all levels of confectionery production, the correct type of investment must be established from the outset, considering the overall lifecycle costs of equipment instead of simply the initial outlay. This way, a solution can be tailored to suit the throughput and output needs of each manufacturer.
“Without this careful consideration, manufacturers open themselves up to inconsistent temper, leading to product give away, poor coverage, blooming, and ultimately, a poor product that doesn’t satisfy the customer,” warns Mike.
Spice Drops – a magic solution for all chocolatiers
Holy Lama Spice Drops are the answer to every chocolatier’s prayers. Natural, intense flavours that are easy to blend and less messy than working with the raw ingredients, plus with over 30 flavours to work with, who knows what trendsetting combos can be tempered!
The importance of flavour cannot be underestimated and any chocolatier worth their salt will make every effort to source the perfect ingredients to imbue their blends. However, de-seeding vanilla pods, grating ginger or zesting oranges is fiddly and time consuming, not to mention the waste that is involved. Holy Lama Spice Drops take these same fresh ingredients and using a process that has been perfected over 20 years, extract the natural oils to deliver an intense natural flavouring (a single drop makes a genuine impact) while retaining the natural goodness of the raw ingredient too. It removes from the chocolatier the hassle of preparation and, thanks to the three-year shelf life of Spice Drops there is little waste, helping to keep production costs down. The drops are smooth and consistent in taste and texture, allowing easy scalability and automation of recipes, but are also perfect for hand crafted, artisanal chocolates that are made individually.
To make it easier for customers, Spice Drops® operate a ‘no minimum order’ policy and customised sizes (including 1 tonne drums) are available although standard bottle sizes are 100ml, 500ml, 1 litre and 5 litres. Spice Drops® will even create special blends if requested to keep chocolatiers ahead of the flavour game. All bottles come with easy dispense mechanisms that cut down on waste and enable accurate usage.
Gouri Kubair, MD of Holy Lama Naturals says: “We use only the highest quality natural ingredients to make Spice Drops® and I firmly believe that they offer the best possible extracts for any chocolatier looking for classic flavourings such as mint, rose or orange but also more unusual trending tastes such as turmeric, chilli or chai spices. They’re easy to use, mess-free but in terms of flavour and goodness are as good as the real thing.”
Editorial contact:
Editor: Kiran Grewal kgrewal@kennedys.co.uk
