Cacao Is More Than Just Chocolate

Oded Brenner has a great job. He makes chocolate.

In the 1990s, he co-created an international chocolate company called Max Brenner Chocolate. His businesses included a 650-square-meter store on Broadway in New York City.

Then in 2012, Brenner left that business. A few years later, he began exploring a different side of chocolate. In 2015, during a trip to Jamaica, he developed a love and excitement for the fruit that produces chocolate: cacao.

The Jamaican people taught him a lot about cacao -- namely, it is more than just chocolate. Brenner saw Jamaican people making juice, liquor, and flour from the cacao fruit. And they used the whole fruit – not just the beans.

Brenner told the Associated Press that although he had worked with chocolate for 20 years, he knew little about cacao.

"It is the most unknown fruit behind the most known fruit," Brenner said.

While the fruit might have been unknown to him, it is not unknown to the people of Jamaica and other countries like Ecuador.

The Ecuadorian people also taught Brenner how to use cacao. In Ecuador, he saw people drink cacao water and eat the dried fruit of the pods. You can eat the whole fruit, he learned. But in making traditional chocolate, he added, "all of the other parts of the fruit are wasted."

The fruit is a little sweet and a little sour. The cacao water is described as refreshing¹. The seed inside is the cacao bean. This is the part that is processed to make chocolate.

With his new business and his new knowledge, Brenner said he wants to tell both sides of the chocolate story. So, he has created new products that celebrate the traditional side of chocolate-making and the natural taste of the cacao fruit.

Health experts have long noted² the possible good effects that chocolate can have on health. The T.H. Chan Harvard School of Public Health says on its website that the dark chocolate produced from cacao has many necessary nutrients³. These include iron, copper⁴, magnesium⁵, zinc⁶, phosphorus, and substances called flavanols.

Brenner said the unsweetened fruit has other nutrients as well. Cacao is high in antioxidants. And the water is full of natural chemicals called electrolytes. These are substances needed in the body's fluids to control important processes including how your body uses vitamins and minerals and removes waste.

In addition to health, Brenner said that the cacao he uses for his products is farmed in a way that is not harmful to the environment. And it is also fair to the farmers.

Words in This Story

juice –n. the liquid that can be squeezed out of fruits and vegetables

liquor –n. an alcoholic⁷ drink; a product of chocolate processing made from cacao/cocoa beans

flour –n. a fine powder made from grains or similar seeds that is used in cooking

pod –n. a part of some plants that holds seeds

sour –adj. having an acid taste like a lemon

antioxidant –n. a substance that prevents chemical reactions that cause some chemicals in the body or in food to break down

1 refreshing   

adj.使精神振作的，使人清爽的，使人喜欢的

参考例句：

• I find it'so refreshing to work with young people in this department.我发现和这一部门的青年一起工作令人精神振奋。
• The water was cold and wonderfully refreshing.水很涼，特别解乏提神。

2 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

3 nutrients   

n.（食品或化学品）营养物，营养品( nutrient的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lack of essential nutrients 基本营养的缺乏
• Nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream. 营养素被吸收进血液。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 copper   

n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的

参考例句：

• The students are asked to prove the purity of copper.要求学生们检验铜的纯度。
• Copper is a good medium for the conduction of heat and electricity.铜是热和电的良导体。

5 magnesium   

n.镁

参考例句：

• Magnesium is the nutrient element in plant growth.镁是植物生长的营养要素。
• The water contains high amounts of magnesium.这水含有大量的镁。

6 zinc   

n.锌；vt.在...上镀锌

参考例句：

• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc.黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。
• Zinc is used to protect other metals from corrosion.锌被用来保护其他金属不受腐蚀。

7 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。