Wacky World of Choc Wednesdays: Chocolate Stop Motion Videos
This week’s focus is on chocolate, artistry, and technology once again, this time in the form of videos that apply stop motion animation techniques to chocolate. Chocolate lends itself well to stop motion and recent use of the technique ranges from slick pro jobs with fancy props, lighting, and the use of sophisticated software to DIY digital camera+candy+home computer work done on the cheap.
A friend of a friend passed on this whimsical video for Jesse & Joy’s “Chocolate,” directed by Carlos Lopez Estrada:
The stop motion video uses dozens of different foods, chocolate and cookies principal among them, and was put together by an incredibly artistic (and organized!) crew. It’s result is a gorgeous mix of organic materials and technological possibility. I especially love the elephant drummer and the cheery singing dairy cows. Watch the behind the scenes video for a look at how they used a torch to melt chocolate through a metal table. Don’t try this at home, kids.
The chorus of the song, first in the original Spanish, then roughly translated into English:
Nuestro amor sabe a chocolate
Un corazón de bombón que late
Nuestro amor sabe a chocolate
Oh oh oh oh ohOur love knows chocolate
A chocolate heart that beats
Our love knows chocolate
Oh oh oh oh oh
Cadbury Creme Egg launched an ad campaign in 2008 with the absurd slogan “Release the Goo.” The campaign has a website linking to games, apps, and consumer generated content, all centered around dares. It also includes a number of short stop motion videos ending with dramatic explosions of Cadbury Creme Egg gooeyness. A particularly heartwrenching example, Mousetrap:
A YouTube search reveals a host of DIY stop motion videos that involve chocolate. While these videos are not as elaborate as those of Jesse & Joy or Cadbury Creme Eggs, they are nevertheless entertaining examples of chocolate stop motion fun.
For example, there is the touching Milk Chocolate: A Love Story starring interracial chocolate bunnies:
And the riveting Chocolate Tetris played with Ritter Sport squares:
Finally, the team behind the new Sagres Preta Chocolate Beer from Portugal adapted the stop motion technique to create “the world’s first website entirely made of chocolate”, an interactive site that’s worth a look to admire its artistry. The launch of the beer in conjunction with the site has generated viral publicity on the web; blogs and feeds have discussed the site extensively over the past two months (e.g. posts from Foodista, Oddity Central, and so good magazine. Here’s a behind the scenes look at the making of the site:
So cool.
Links: Recent News in Chocolate, Culture, and the Politics of Food
Chocolate news
America’s Favorite Chocolate Candy Bars Are Soon to Become Another Genetically Modified Food. This is very disturbing news for the chocolate world. GM crops present an enormous danger to biological diversity, and thus to the future diversity of available cacao.
Hungary proposes a ‘chocolate tax’
“The Hungarian government has proposed the introduction of a special tax on food products and drinks which contain salt or sugar in excessive quantities, Reuters reports.” This is one approach toward legislative intervention in the global obesity crisis.
Good news for researchers: Nestlé opens archives facility in York
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) plans to regulate some health claims made about chocolate by food companies. For now, they state that: “Theobromine in cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) does not enhance mood.”
Cargill has designated three employees to work exclusively on sustainability projects: Cargill sets up dedicated team to accelerate sustainable cocoa agenda
A new chocolate bar that I’m adding to the “must try” list:
Chuao Chocolatier Proves Opposites Attract with “Potato Chips in Chocolate” Bar. This bar brings together milk chocolate and potato chips. Hallelujah, hallelujah! Childhood junk food dreams come true!
You can even watch a delicious video of the bar being made:
Droolworthy chocolate recipes from the blogging world, all look great for summer:
Bitter Chocolate and Buttermilk Ice Cream, from Leite’s Culinaria
(Note: see David Lebovitz’s How To Make Ice Cream Without a Machine for a simple DIY method.)
Bread with Chocolate and Olive Oil, from Mark Bittman
Dark Chocolate Mocha Fudge Pops, from Always Order Dessert
Frozen Chocolate Peanut Dacquoise, from Alice Q. Foodie
No Bake Chocolate Cake Recipe, from 101 Cookbooks
Food politics news:
I’ll be attending this food politics webinar next Thursday, July 14th, from 5-7pm: Law as a Social Determinant: Black Health, Food Insecurity, and the Law. I once worked with a wonderful undergraduate student who introduced me to the problem of food deserts, and I’ve been trying to learn more about them (well, really about how to get rid of them), especially in the context of race and class in the US, ever since.
Infographic: USDA’s latest data on adoption GM crops: 65%-94% of corn, soy, and cotton. (via @marionnestle)
Must read article: Big Ag’s Latest Attempt to Chill Free Speech, from Michele Simon
During the week, I tweet many of these articles via my twitter feed.
Wacky World of Choc Wednesdays: Chocolate Printing
One of the news stories making its way through both the geek and chocolate worlds this week has to do with a 3D printer that prints with chocolate.
From the press release, entitled “The future of gift shopping – design and print your own 3D chocolate objects”:
Using new digital technology the printer allows you to create your own designs on a computer and reproduce them physically in three dimensional form in chocolate.
The project is funded as part of the Research Council UK Cross-Research Council Programme – Digital Economy and is managed by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) on behalf of ESRC, AHRC and MRC. It is being led by the University of Exeter in collaboration with the University of Brunel and software developer Delcam.
3D printing is a technology where a three dimensional object is created by building up successive layers of material. The technology is already used in industry to produce plastic and metal products but this is the first time the principles have been applied to chocolate.
The research has presented many challenges. Chocolate is not an easy material to work with because it requires accurate heating and cooling cycles. These variables then have to be integrated with the correct flow rates for the 3D printing process. Researchers overcame these difficulties with the development of new temperature and heating control systems.
There are a number of enthusiastic posts from the geek/tech world that explain the implications of a product like this, e.g.:
Chocolate Printer Is Here; Foodies of the World Celebrate, from PC World
UK researchers developing 3D printer that crafts with chocolate, from Digital Trends
Chocolate 3-D Printer Arrives At Last, from Wired
The printer sounds like a neat way to be creative with chocolate, though I expect that fine chocolate connoisseurs are with me in wondering how much the chocolate quality will be compromised. It’s also not yet widely available for use, so those of us eager to see it in action will just have to wait. The good news is, if you’re a handy geek and would like to make a 3D chocolate printer at home, say, with LEGOs, there’s an Instructable for that!
For a number of years, of course, there has been a robust business around printing on chocolate. Consumers can do things like personalize their M&Ms and put their faces on lollipops with relative ease. There is even a food printer that can print white ink on thin sheets of dark chocolate [video].
Sweden-based MasterPiece Systems and US-based Chocolography are just two of the companies offering sophisticated equipment that can print on chocolate.
Check out this sultry video for a demo of the MX-315 from MasterPiece Systems:
And here’s an interview with Mark Weiss of Chocolography with more details about how the printer works:
The growing industry of printing with or on food is a fun and quirky one. And throwing chocolate into the mix is just brilliant. Thinking on it now, I am reminded of this quote from Patrick Skene Catling’s The Chocolate Touch: “Chocolate all the time… Chocolate’s best, that’s all. Other things are just food. But chocolate’s chocolate.”
Recent Stories in Chocolate News
Chocolate is often in the news, offering more evidence that it has captured our society’s interest and imagination. Over the past several weeks, a few stories have stood out and have the potential to significantly impact the chocolate world. Below, I’ve compiled links to some of the big headlines, along with my own commentary.
Increases in cocoa prices
In mid-February, cocoa prices reached a 32 year high, prompting a flurry of news articles, hedge fund activity, and speculation about what this might mean for the chocolate industry and consumers. The price fluctuation has been caused by a number of factors, especially serious political unrest in Ivory Coast, where 60% of the world’s cacao cultivation takes place. Sugar prices have also fluctuated toward higher prices as of late, although most recently they have dropped slightly.
- NPR’s coverage of changes in cocoa prices provides basic sociohistorical context. You can listen and read here: Rising Cocoa Prices May Leave Chocolate Fans Bitter.
- This article, from Inside Futures, summarizes various bullish and bearish factors (phew! how animalistic!) in the price changes of these commodities. It includes charts that illustrate price fluctuations. Foods and Softs Outlook – February 18, 2011.
Political Upheaval in the Ivory Coast
In the fall of 2010, the Ivory Coast held a presidential election, the results of which are still in dispute. Laurent Gbagbo held the office of President until the election, when he likely was defeated by opponent Alassare Ouattara. Gbagbo steadfastly refuses to leave office, however, and has gone so far as to unleash violent, often ethnically and religiously based attacks on protesters and to order UN peacekeepers to leave the country (they have refused). Other countries have imposed increasingly severe sanctions on Ivory Coast, and the sale and export of cocoa is in jeopardy.
This article, and the following video from Voice of America, offer more information, especially in relation to cocoa: Ivory Coast Economy Drops Amid Political Impasse.
BAMCO switches to Fair Trade chocolate
On February 7, 2011, Bon Appétit Management Co., a large food provider for colleges, corporations, and special events, announced that it would begin using Fair Trade chocolate in all of its 400 plus kitchens. The baking chocolate will be sourced from Cordillera Chocolate, a Fair Trade Certified company.
Numerous articles about this decision are available on the web. I recommend the following:
- Bon Appétit Management Co.’s Press Release, with details on the decision and Cordillera Chocolate: For Immediate Release.
- A thoughtful article about chocolate, taste, and trade policy, written by Helene York, director of strategic initiatives for BAMCO, via The Atlantic online: Chocolate Is Sweet, But Chocolate Policy Would Be Sweeter.
- An article from Change.org, which celebrates BAMCO’s decision and questions why other companies have yet to do the same: Bon Appétit: Enjoy Fair Trade Chocolate!
Blommer Chocolate Co.’s Huge Cocoa Shipment
North America-based Blommer Chocolate Co. recently received the largest cacao bean shipment ever after purchasing 18,400 metric tons of the stuff. Blommer is no stranger to large quantities – the company’s website states: “Blommer Chocolate is the largest cocoa bean processor in North America (145,000 Metric Tons); 5% of World Cocoa Crop.” Perhaps even more remarkable than the size of the shipment is the fact that this cocoa was Rainforest Alliance certified and purchased in accordance with Blommer Chocolate Co.’s commitment to sustainability. Read more here: Blommer Gets Major Cocoa Shipment.
Chocolate melts, whether we want it to or not
Chocolate manufacturers have, for many years, tried to produce chocolate that does not so easily melt when exposed to heat. Just imagine the possibilities! A number of ingredient additions can help to prevent melting – sugar, oat flour, gelatin, or cornstarch, for example – though these things can significantly affect taste. This article gives a brief summary of some of the results from research and suggests that manufacturers still have a ways to go before they are able to produce a magical non-melting chocolate: Hot Chocolate: No Heat Resistant Solution Says Review.
Just for fun: Chocolate Chemistry
2011 has been named the International Year of Chemistry (IYC2011) by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) and the United Nations Educational, Cultural, and Scientific Organization (UNESCO). In honor of IYC2011, Scientific American has partnered with NBC Learn’s ChemistryNOW (which arose out of a partnership with the National Science Foundation). All of this is to say that these formal proclamations and initiatives around chemistry have led, in part, to this article and the following short video about the chemistry of chocolate. The video shows that science is part of why chocolate tastes so darn good. Enjoy!
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Bittersweet Notes is an open source research project on chocolate, culture, and the politics of food. I invite you to join me as I explore the story of chocolate and the life stories of those involved with chocolate at its many stages of production and consumption.
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