Candy Dish Blog

By 2008 numbers, the World Bank estimates that China has about 1.3 billion people, about 20% of the world’s population. That makes China the most populous country on the globe, closely followed by India. However, despite having 20% of the world’s population and a quickly growing economy, China is responsible for only two percent of world chocolate sales.

This number is growing, albeit slowly, and the disparity is quite striking. What could be the big barrier to chocolate imports in such a large country? Kris Eddy of The Motley Fool recently asked a related question and a commenter explained that one big barrier is that chocolate has been used in China for quite a while as a way to cover the bitter taste of various medicines, including cures for intestinal parasites. Talk about taste aversion.

Could this negative association be the whole story? I suspect that is a large part of it but that another aspect is China’s unique economy, which is growing yet very protected, with built-in barriers to foreign trade. In addition, as Slate’s Daniel Gross points out, chocolate is an expensive treat, possibly too sweet for the country’s palate and contains milk, which does not sit well in a country with a high level of lactose intolerance, as China has.

Right now China is up for grabs by the chocolate industry for whichever company wants to put in the marketing dollars to promote a treat that is not very popular. It’s a huge bite to chew on, and an expensive one, but potentially very lucrative. Another barrier is that China rid the country of most foreign influences a number of years ago and only really started to open up in the 1970’s, so there have been about 35 years to bring chocolate into the country and promote it.

India, on the other hand, seen as the other big, largely untapped market, has historic and commercial connections with England dating back to the early 1600’s. Although these times were not always peaceful and certainly wrought with turmoil especially toward the end of the colonial period, the end of the Raj saw a mutual agreement of friendship when India joined the Commonwealth in 1947. It makes sense that one or more British companies would dominate India’s chocolate market simply based on this 400-year-old connection.

But China is problematic. Without a natural taste for the treat and without historic trade connections, it is almost a blank slate of opportunity but bordered by strong barriers on all sides. Are the barriers too much for  chocolate makers to overcome? I suspect a balance will be found. China will likely not readily embrace chocolate the way we have in the U.S. but chocolate manufacturers may find some inroads by marketing it as a luxury item for wealthy consumers and others who appreciate the finer things in life.

The future of the industry in China is uncertain, but one thing is for sure. Mastering the art of chocolate in China might be like breaking the roughest horse in the corral and the company that figures out the secret to this will likely profit handsomely from the payoff. If you can ride him, he’s yours. Now who is going to be the first to step up?

Map of China by GGuillaume.

Many thanks to loyal reader Kristin, whom you can see in the picture at right, hiding behind the candy fortress and my coffee cup, for sending me an article about the world’s top ten best selling candies. It’s really a very interesting analysis about the global confectionery market and finishes with the list. When Kristin isn’t busy finding content for this blog, which is really my responsibility, I recruit her to help feed and hose down the oompa loompas and oil Jonny’s roller skates from time to time. She has her own duties too, like basically keeping the office running. We couldn’t do anything without her here.

The top ten is interesting in itself, but go read the article for more information.

1. M&Ms – Mars – USA
2. Cadbury’s Dairy Milk – Cadbury – UK
3. Milka – Kraft – Germany
4. Trident – Cadbury – Brazil
5. Meiji – Meiji Seika Kaisha – Japan
6. Orbit – Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. – Russia
7. Trident – Cadbury – Mexico
8. Hollywood – Cadbury – France
9. Vivident – Perfetti Van Melle – Italy
10. Hsu Fu Chi – Hsu Fu Chi International – China

Thanks, Kristin, for this article. The whole office appreciates your hard work. You are a true gem in our office of gem-colored candies.

Does this surprise you? What would you have guessed was the world’s top selling candy?

Yesterday, Carl showed us the best ways to choose candy gifts for everyone on our list.  If you already have a gift you think is pretty perfect, today we offer some ideas on how to make it even sweeter.

It’s easy to get creative about pairing candy with a gift to make it more memorable (and delicious!). Here are some ideas to get started.

Pamper a loved one with a spa service like a facial or fancy pedicure
Wrap the spa certificate inside a luxurious towel along with a relaxing CD, a gourmet dark chocolate bar and an aromatherapy candle (peppermint is a mood lifter and helps improve mental clarity, alertness and concentration).

Give a membership to the local gym
Tuck the membership card inside a sports duffel bag – don’t forget a water bottle, new sneakers, energy gum or mints and a portable music player for those high-energy tunes.

Treat a movie lover to a gift certificate to the local theater or movie store
Place the card inside an empty popcorn bucket with a few boxes of movie-theater style candy and a film trivia book or encyclopedia.

Serve up a themed gift to the coffee lover
A fancy coffee maker (maybe one of those one-cup-at-a time models?) will be appreciated even more when it comes with a couple of large coffee mugs, a pound of beans, a small grinder and some chocolate-covered espresso beans or coffee-flavored chocolates. For a personal touch, hand-dip heavy-weight, clear plastic spoons in melted chocolate and place on wax paper to dry. Remove from wax paper and wrap in a glassine bag or envelope you’ve made from more wax paper.

Pair a gift of travel with regional foods and gifts
Planning to give someone a trip for the holidays? Offer the recipient clues and make them guess the destination. For example, if you’re going to San Francisco, you can include chop sticks (the city boasts the largest Chinatown in the U.S.), a box of Rice-a-Roni (the San Francisco treat) and a few Ghiradelli Chocolate squares (and be sure to visit Ghiradelli Square once you get to town). A little Internet research should yield regional candies for just about any location.

Indulge the explorer
Pair binoculars and a globe or atlas with candies from around the world, or get more specific and focus on one country with maps, foods and crafts native that culture. Look online to find out what foods are enjoyed in the location you chose and what kinds of handmade items they have.

Give to the green-thumbed gardener
In a big flower pot, assemble flower or vegetable seeds, gardening gloves and tools, gummi worms, and chocolate-covered seeds, nuts or berries. Tuck in some foil-wrapped chocolate flowers and tell the recipient that even though it might be too cold outside for flowers, there’s no reason not to enjoy them inside this winter.

This week I have gotten a lot of e-mails from friends and others – moms, educators and concerned community members – about the safety of Halloween products regarding the industrial chemical melamine.  Most of these e-mails have focused on chocolate gold coins. You may have gotten these e-mails yourself.  In fact, the great Internet investigators over at Snopes have even spent some time looking into it.

Unfortunately, while the original senders probably had extremely noble intentions, confusion and questions have been generated instead.

I know that every American who plans to hand out candy this Halloween wants to be sure that he or she is buying products safe for kids. Parents, more than anyone, want to be sure the candy they give their children is not harmful.  And people have asked me, “Is what I read online true?”.  It’s clear that people are a little scared, with just cause, and we wanted to help allay some of the fears.

Please know that a safe and secure food supply is the industry’s number one goal and concern every day of the year.

The information about chocolate gold coins and melamine contamination that has been circulated widely on the Internet is partially true, but important safety facts are missing in some of the e-mails. 

Here are the real facts:

It’s true that a single shipment of chocolate coins in Canada was recalled due to melamine prior to the global awareness that some milk products and ingredients in China had been contaminated with melamine. The product was only sold to Costco Canada and has already been reclaimed.  A recall is not in place in the U.S because the product was never shipped to the USA and not available here. Only one brand is impacted at this time, and even then only the product that was was sold in Canada was affected.  The company has been incredibly diligent about working with Canadian government and communicating with the industry throughout the whole process.

U.S. confectionery companies doing business in China have stringent quality control procedures in place for production of candy. These companies began testing product immediately when the alert on melamine contamination of milk was first issued.   Additionally, all foods from China containing milk are being tested now by FDA at the border prior to entry.

Many companies make chocolate gold coins, especially around this time of year.  Most are manufactured in the U.S., Germany, Belgium or Turkey and all are perfectly safe to eat. Other gold coins made in China are also safe to eat now that manufacturers are aware of the milk supply contamination and that milk has been destroyed.  Again, FDA is testing all Chinese imports with milk as an ingredient.

As you know if you’ve been reading the blog, only one candy in the U.S. has been recalled due to melamine contamination – White Rabbit candy, a product made in China, by a Chinese company and sold mainly in Asian markets.  If you have White Rabbit candy, the Food and Drug Administration advises you to throw it away or return it to the store.  Do not eat White Rabbit candy at this time. 

You can read our statement on the issue on the CandyUSA Web site.  Please feel free to share it or this post with friends.

Again, there is nothing more important to us than ensuring a safe food supply and helping people celebrate a fun and safe and healthy Halloween.  If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me.

Melamine was found in chocolate gold coins distributed at Costco stores in Canada. There has not been any reported in the US but we have an official statement on this to share.

From NCA’s web site:

• The NCA’s position is clear: any candy product, regardless of its country of origin, must meet the same stringent safety standards that U.S. products meet.
• Candy imported from China accounts for less than one percent (0.7%) of all confectionery sold in the United States.
• Chocolate products produced in North America do not contain milk or milk products imported from China.
• NCA recommends consumers:
  • Discard any White Rabbit confectionery product imported from China (White Rabbit is the brand name of a white, chewy, taffy-like candy).
  • Be aware that a small shipment of chocolate gold coins in Canada was found to contain melamine. At this time, the product appears to have been only available in Canada where a recall is underway and the majority of the product has been reclaimed.

If you have questions about melamine and its possible health impacts, you can read more about it on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Web site.

Remember – the source of this issue is contaminated Chinese milk products. One good way of dealing with the uncertainty of whether your favorite product is safe is to go to the manufacturer’s web sites to see if they have product news that might address your concerns. If you still have doubts about a particular product, you can contact the company and they will be happy to give you the full scoop. Not all chocolate products from China are bad or tainted. Many have been tested already and been shown to be fine.

I just got this in my email a few minutes ago. We have had a lot of people ask if chocolate and other confectionery products were safe. People are pretty darned scared about this melamine problem we have been hearing so much about in the news, and for good reason.

Here is NCA’s official statement on the issue:

Chocolate makers abide by strict government regulations in order to ensure the quality and safety of chocolate products sold in the US. Last week the Food and Drug Administration announced that the agency has expanded its testing of food products imported from China. NCA agrees with this action; all candy products sold in the US, regardless of country of origin, must meet the same stringent safety standards.

Chocolate products produced in North America do not source milk or milk products from China. Consumers can continue to enjoy their favorite chocolates knowing they are as wholesome and safe as ever.

However, there have been some candy recalls. QFCO, Inc. issued a recall for their White Rabbit candies on Friday due to possible melamine contamination. From their press release on the issue: “Consumers who have purchased White Rabbit Candy are urged to return it to the place of purchase for a full refund or discard it in their trash. Consumers with questions may contact the company at (650) 697-6633.”

Cadbury has had a similar recall of its Chinese-made products but not for any of their products distributed in North America. The problem products were reportedly only distributed in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Australia.

The bottom line is that if you live in North America and buy products made there, you are fine. If you are concerned, one way to be extra vigilant is to turn a package over to see where it was manufactured and whether it contains milk. Right now it is milk-based products from China that are highly suspect. Milk-based products from other countries can be assumed to be safe.