Source: Giulian Frisoni
Chocolate, luxurious and decadent, is enjoyed by individuals over global. Our class had the opportunity to taste what makes chocolate into chocolate: the raw cacao. By eating both chocolate and cacao we were able to contemplate global inequities in the world’s food system.
While chocolate is rich, cacao is bitter. I savored the cacao, I could taste the distinctive flavor, but something was missing. Raw cacao tastes like chocolate ash. On reflection, I remember the poor cacao farmers in Africa (Lecture 7). The farmers did not know chocolate existed and one speculated other countries were importing it to make wine. The farmers didn’t taste the pleasure they created the only taste they got was the bitter raw bean.
I am privileged in my food consumption compared to the developing world. African farmers are in a system rigged against them. They might have been able to roast their own beans or make chocolate had the EU not imposed such steep tariffs on both of those imports (Carolyn). Europe and other developing countries get the chocolate while Africa is stuck with the ash. The WTO allows these kinds of trade distortions in so-called “free trade” global market.
After savoring the cacao, I was ready to expel the ash flavor from my mouth. I popped the piece of dark chocolate into my mouth. The chocolate melted and enveloped my taste buds. What was once the bitter cacao had been transformed into a unique flavor experience. The flavor of chocolate is much more familiar to me than raw cacao, unlike the African farmers. During the clip where the tasted chocolate for the first time, they’re surprised, delighted and express what a privilege it was to eat chocolate. When I tasted the chocolate I could contemplate the real inequality in the world food system.