At the beginning of the XNUMXth century, the first attempts to systematically cultivate cacao emerged in Colombia.

For these years, the consumption of chocolate had not been generalized and panela water was one of the most used beverages. In 1886 Tulio Ospina published a Manual of the cultivation of cocoa with the aim of promoting its sowing and benefit.

At the end of the 6.000th century, Colombia produced about XNUMX tons of cocoa. Despite the various problems that farmers faced, chocolate as a drink gradually became integrated into daily life and created a whole culture around it.

The chronicles of travelers and the pictures of customs of the writers of the time, left testimonies of the taste for the drink, its forms of preparation and the moments of consumption. By then, chocolate was reserved for the wealthiest. It was rare to find it in a peon's food ration, and in Antioquia it was very customary to mix it with corn flour.

Colombia, a tropical country, located on the equatorial line, presents incomparable conditions for the sowing of cocoa, in an interesting variety of agroecological systems that make this heterogeneous country have the greatest potential for the development of the crop.

Chocolate is a product of the transformation of the cocoa bean; Food of the most complete nutritionally and with properties favorable for human health given its contribution in minerals, vitamins, fiber and stimulating substances, in fact it has great virtues for health, in that since its derivatives have the property of helping in the prevention of heart disease and cancer.

The nutritional qualities of chocolate can be measured by its smell, since the darker it is, the more antioxidants it contains.

In Colombia we love to consume chocolate, especially in areas with a cold climate such as Bogotá. The best thing is to have a hot chocolate with cheese, on a rainy afternoon, sitting with some friends in a bakery in La Candelaria

We are waiting for you here in Colombia so that we can enjoy it together!

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