Forum Activity for @Benoit

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hello

I have just started experiments on my new coating pan. Is there anyone out there that could help me?

I put my hazelnuts into the pan, then pour the tempered chocolate...all began to mix...and a few minutes later, everything began to stick...and I got, a big "ball' of choco-hazelnuts"...horrifying...what is the problem do you think? How to avoid that? Is it a matter of spinning speed? of amount of material in the pan?

Thank you

Benoit

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Thank you very much. I'll give Dave a call.

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Centerchem is a great resource. Dave Jordan's your go-to guy with them.

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Do you have any recommended suppliers for the coatings (glaze, food shellac, etc.)?

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hey Bob, how'd your education, equipment procurement, and first steps go? We're looking into panning but probably not on the scale you are.

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Something around 20 inches is all I have experience with. You don't want to overfill the pan initially, because as you add the chocolate the amount of product 'grows'. It doesn't take too long to coat a batch, then it sits overnight anyway before polishing the next day.

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Kerry,Thanks for the reply and yes, that answered my questions. I also took a look at the Union Machinery web site for used equipment. Lots of items to choose from. What might be a good size to start with for batch sizes of 15 - 20 pounds?

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Yup, those pans would have worked fine. You use the smooth pan for the coating, then one of the ridged pans for polishing. Of course you can tape tubing inside your smooth pan, to make it ridged for polishing.By 'coat the chocolate after panning' I assume you are asking if you need products such as polish and sealers? The whole process can be accomplished without these things.

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Thanks for the great replies. The coarse seems to be a great way to get started. I do like the idea of a headed pan for other flavorings. However, I might look at one of the off the shelf nut roasters which are propane fired. This way I can run the chocolate in one room where the ambient can be better controlled and do the roasting and flavoring in another room where the heat isn't as much of a problem.I did actually bid on the 3 pans that were on eBay but I had to be away from my computer when the bidding closed and I got outbid in the end. Would this type of pan work for chocolate? One had ridges and the other two were smooth inside. Might like to know if another deal like this come up.Also, is there a need to coat the chocolate after it has been panned? Is this a standard process or only used with certain types of chocolates?Thanks again for the suggestions.Bob

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

I second the PMCA/NCA panning course. It was an excellent course.You've got to love the Selmi - a little dear in price - but it heats and cools which allows you to polish the product without any additional polishing products being added.E-bay often has pans - I bought a Stokes pan several years ago. I noticed a group of 3 small pans that closed yesterday for about $2100.There are a couple of companies that sell used equipment - Union Machinary being one that comes to mind.The chocolate is probably one of those things you are going to have to experiment with to decide what you like with your product. I've been happy lately with the Belgian Belcolade milk and dark.

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

The PMCA offers a nice panning course, covers hard, soft, and chocolate panning. Think too of a pan you can also hot pan with. Similar pan but with gas burner under to caramelize sugar around the nuts. Add a variety of seasonings and you can offer a nice seasonal variety. But then you can also season the chocolate. For chocolate, think of a cool/dry air source. Portable coolers work nice but overall warm the room so not good for continuous use. Just blowing ambient air will work if cool/dry enough, but you lose some control, especially if you're looking to add color for marbling or speckling.Good luck with whatever you choose.

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Greetings,
I'm investigating the art/science of chocolate panning for nuts, primarily hazelnuts and almonds. This would be for a small side business to our hazelnut farm here in Oregon. I'm looking at providing raw, roasted and chocolate coated nuts to start with. Raw and roasted I have under control, but chocolate panning and equipment is new except for what I've been reading. Still, looking at batch sizes of say 10 to 20 pounds of nuts, what type/brand of coating pan might be a good start? The Selmi certainly looks like a great tool but really high end and costly. Is there any good source for used equipment?

Regarding the process, what is the best approach for classes, training or literature? What are some of the best bulk chocolates to purchase, both milk and dark?

Thanks,
Bob

updated by @Bob Aman: 04/11/25 09:27:36

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hi llana! Craigslist is a website used for posting classifieds and forums... Not sure it is used much in Israel. http://telaviv.craigslist.org/ I use it to look for used equipment in other cities in America... It is great for posting things for sale, or to post things that you are looking for. People even post homes and cars for sale.

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Can you explain to me what is Craigslist-sorry!

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Thermoelectric coolers are all over Craigslist. I bought two last summer (one in May, one was in July) for $30-$35/piece
updated by @Chris6: 04/17/15 19:11:34

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

I am new in the business and ready to start selling, but need chocolate cabinets to place in retail areas. Could I obtain specs to give to my electrical engineering son? I need 2 cabinets now! For retail locations - one a zoo, and another a large gallery/antique mall. email directly: jackiejjjj@aol.com

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

With the unit pictured above, condensation from the cooling fins on the cold (inside) section, amounts to around 1/2 cup daily. Here we have an average RH of around 70%, and I've measured a very respectable 50-55% inside the display.The temperature differential is not enough (usually) to cause any significant condensation.Oh, and at Valrhona's Ecole, they were using a thermoelectric dehumidifier in the crystallization room. Apparently they do work quite well, the chefs seemed pretty taken with it.

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Koolatron manufactures about 30 miles from me - not sure if you still can, but you used to be able to go to their outlet and pick up seconds for just a few bucks. I see them occasionally at thrift stores too.

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Search for "portable thermoelectric cooler" on Google. There are a number of different brands but "Koolatron" seems to be very highly rated. You can get a good-sized one for under $200 that runs off 12VDC - plugs straight into the "convenience" outlet of a car or optional 120VAC adapter. Vinotemp makes one (available at Home Depot) that is soft-sided and is built into a luggage cart. Not quite as large as some of the Koolatron units but it would seem to be convenient for some applications.

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hey Wendy and Cheebs, thanks for the tips you both gave. I'm sorry to have replied so slowly but I've been traveling. Wendy, those are some great ideas for keeping the money coming in during the summer. Frozen hot chocolate? Fabulous!Cheebs, that case is gorgeous. I suspect a custom cabinet maker here in New England would get a bit more than $1000. though. The 12 volt car battery is a good idea. I wonder if those small solar collectors would be good? I may just have to nab the one on our horse's paddock and play around with the idea!Tracy

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Good idea. My gears are turning. I will have to think about this for a while. Seems like we could really make something perfect for pretty cheap. I love to "MacGyver" new tools. My husband always says that we are in the wrong business...the people who make the equipment for chocolatiers are the ones making the money! Everything is SO expensive!

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

The cabinet was made by a professional cabinetmaker, who also had the curved glass made. I did all the electrics and lighting. It wasn't cheap either, with total cost coming in around $1000. Still very good compared to commercial units which sell around $3k-$5k.I had considered selling a similar unit, but since I'm in Guatemala it makes it very expensive to ship just about anywhere.BTW, most wine coolers actually use thermoelectric devices for cooling. If you can find a damaged unit you could use the internals to cool your display.

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hey Cheebs! That is really nice! You built this? You could sell these like crazy! I have had to find the most inexpensive ways to do farmer's markets... I tell everyone that visits our booth to come to our shop...for the finer things that we create...it usually works. But maybe one day I could splurge and have this as an option. It looks very impressive. Thanks for the suggestion of thermoelestric coolers too! I actually have never seen one of these. When we decided to start doing farmer's markets...we toyed with the idea of getting a small wine cooler. But decided that it would be open and closed so much it wouldn't work. I will keep this in mind if I ever decide to change how we do things.

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Something no one has suggested so far are thermoelectric coolers. They come in a variety of sizes, and unlike ice cooling, these units actually dehumidify, instead of adding moisture to the air in the cooler.I built a 12-volt powered, LED-illuminated portable display cooled by a unit cannibalized from a cooler. A compact 12-volt car battery could easily power this unit all day, as it draws a measly 67 watts of power. It works quite well, usually giving a 15 degree differential between outside and in. Where I'm located there's no need for more cooling, but I imagine adding a second unit would do the trick in hotter places. Here's a picture.

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Another thing about sampling...My husband reminded me about how Fudge shops are known for giving samples. Oh the many times I have seen people stop by for the sample and not buy while on vacation to tourist towns...Gatlinburg, TN, the Atlantic City Boardwalk...etc. I wonder how much is actually given away. There is a small Fudge shop here where we live and they display a huge sign in the window boasting "FREE TASTE". I can't help from picturing a giant block of fudge inside...like a salt lick, for the customers to go in and take a nice big taste...or lick. Shoo dee doo. I blame them along with Costco for the "freebie hunters". They have lost their appreciation for the finer things...and I think it is pretty inconsiderate to always ask a small business for free samples! Owning a business is tough...and Very expensive! Somebody has to pay for all those samples! Ha Ha! Sorry to go on about this! Sampling is a difficult subject.

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Just found this discussion. I do farmers markets throughout the summer. It is a great way to keep money coming in during the slowest time of the year. I have a shop, so most of the people who come visit us at the market know what I do in my shop and if they don't know us I can tell them about it. At the farmers market, We do things that we do not do in our shop. We do "festival type" things like frozen bananas dipped in chocolate, chocolate dipped strawberry kabobs, our own version of frozen hot chocolate, etc. Things you can walk around with and eat... Our customers love it and they know to go to the market to get these things...made fresh right in front of them. On cooler days we do an amazing hot chocolate, caramel apples, and we will then start bringing in products from our shop...candy bars, chocolate covered nuts, mendiants, etc. It keeps me from having to deal with melting so much. It seems to keep customers coming back to see what's new too...because we will dip fresh fruits that are in season. A bag of fresh blackberries in white chocolate, raspberries in dark, or dark chocolate figs...etc. I love the market. I love the comments on sampling too! I like the idea of sampling ganache...a lot of people don't quite understand what all goes into making truffles. I never sample them...and I have really quit sampling just about anything. I had a lady last week at the market get mad at me for not sampling to her...but she was the only one who asked for a sample. Everyone else seemed excited to BUY something. I was so happy to hear about the lady that ate cat food mentioned earlier! That is awesome! You don't get samples of food you are ordering at a restaurant...you cant just sample any product at Walmart...but I agree with Elena...it is a Costco or Sams syndrome that people have. It drives me crazy! What we do is so specialized...I just can't give it away anymore. I have been burned by doing that in the past. People stop coming to buy things and come for samples...even other vendors started coming at the end of the day to see what I had left over after I gave out fresh berries that had been dipped in chocolate that didn't sell. It was upsetting. They buy them now because they love them! I do give the other vendors a small discount now...it is like a big family...If you do stick to selling your chocolates throughout the summer, I think Elena has some great tips!

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hey Mark, she has a lovely website and some extremely unique creations. I love her global icons w/24k goldleaf! Clever, clever, clever. Thanks for pointing her out! Tracy

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hi Tracy, you might consider contacting Sarah Hart, on this site. She owns Alma chocolates in Portland OR and has been selling at her local farmers market for years. She actually started just selling at the farmers market, now she has a wonderful shop but she still sells at the market. She would be a good person to contact.I am thinking of selling my chocolate at a farmers market near where I live too so this discussion is timely, thanks!-Mark Sciscenti

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

I sell my pottery at craft shows and there are many food vendors there. The chocolate booths mostly seem to dice up their product and give very small samples (handed to the customer with tongs). Otherwise, they'd be wiped out. I had a friend who made chocolate sauce and he was so disgusted at his first show at the amount of product he felt he had to give away just to make sales.I chuckled when you mention the Costco phenomenon of free samples. I was at a wholesale trade show in Chicago where food items, as well as household goods were being shown to shop owners. There were two aisles of food (with samples of course), then you round a corner and the gift items started. Well, the first booth people came to from the food aisle was a booth of very life-like stuffed animals, mostly cats. One of the kitties was in a crouched position so the sales person put a bowl of kitty food in front of it to heighten the life like effect. Well, I watched a woman come around the corner, not bother to even look at the items in the booth and simple grab a big handful of kitty food and stuff it into her mouth as she kept walking. Once the food was in there she did hesitate and look back at the booth. To her credit she kept her dignity and swallowed it. Bleck! Sorry to go off topic..... won't do it again I promise!

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Thanks Elena, that's all very helpful. The farmer's mrkt now sounds like a do-able way to go. Very good point about the layering of ice and pans to reduce condensation.Tracy

Selling at farmer's markets... in the heat of summer?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, Techniques

Hello! I am new on the list and enjoying reading all the posts on the forum. I'm trying to put together a plan to start selling my chocolate in a small way (since my pottery business is full time) at farmers markets. Does anyone do this and if so, how do you keep your chocolate from becoming a puddle? I'm assuming coolers but... if the customer can't see the chocolate how do you convince them to buy it? Good photos? Thank you in advance! Tracy
updated by @Tracy Bradford: 04/11/25 09:27:36

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

Jeff -You make some very good points about the role of a co-op like TCGA and how it can be pivotal to the growth and development of a community. However, the TCGA's role as a market maker is unusual, if not unique, because the TCGA has a guaranteed buyer. This is not the case for all FT co-ops. There is a downside to the guarantee, however, as the contract with G&B contains a multi-year rolling average provision to reduce volatility. It doesn't benefit the farmers because the FT contract already contains a minimum price provision. The beneficiary is the buyer who was insulated from the recent price surge.The larger point I am trying to make is that the reality of Fair Trade - on the ground to farmers and their families - is a far different from that portrayed by FLO. Many people still believe that when they buy Fair Trade that money goes directly to farmers.As I have maintained all along, FT is a part of a solution, not the solution, and that alternatives need to be considered. A Direct Trade model (like the one we've been mooting over at 5percent4farmers.ning.com) makes a lot more sense because of the inherent transparency.

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

Clay,I'm very familiar with the situation with the specific co-op and at least generally familiar with how Fair Trade operates. If you rely on your numbers and figure out the financial impact of each farmer on a percentage basis, you would see that each farmer on average earns an extra 5% from being Fair Trade certified. The fact that the nominal amount is a pittance is another story. Not sure you could really consider that 900 farmers in the coop are actively producing. If so, the average farmer produces less than 100 pounds of beans a year. My guess is that only a third are active so the financial impact is threefold.As you acknowledged, the Toledo Cacao Grower's Association (TCGA) is a market maker. Without them, farmers would have no one to sell to. Who would spend the time aggregating the crops of hundreds of farmers and arranging for shipment to an international buyer if not the TCGA? These farmers are Fair Trade certified because it is part of the marketing of Green & Black's Chocolate (TCGA's primary buyer) and therefore a requirement of the product.If you think about it from this perspective, it's almost like a union job. Sure, some unions may waste their member's money, but the member has a job that otherwise wouldn't be available. In this case the farmer is better off selling a Fair Trade product than not selling at all.I do agree that the amounts charged by the Fair Trade Labeling Organizations are exorbitant; a direct trade model makes more sense. Perhaps if Green & Black's/Kraft and the TCGA gave up on Fair Trade labeling, each entity could pass that much more on to the farmers.Jeff

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

Brian:Your experiences are valuable and valued and I am glad you shared them. I think each of us has something that we're "expert" at - I just happen to very open to sharing my experiences and what I've synthesized from them.You are so right - the system that seems to make so much sense to consumers in "developed" nations doesn't make a whole lot of sense to farmers in "undeveloped" areas of the world when they learn of the benefits for the work required to earn them.Consumers (especially here in the US) have to learn that inexpensive food is not a birthright, and shareholders in companies need to reward corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs that deliver tangible value and aren't just greenwashing.

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

You nailed this one on it's head. Thanks Clay.Cotton Tree Chocolate also buys beans from TCGA and has no problem with paying for the Fair Trade premium for the beans. Because Cotton Tree Chocolate is such a small company, the costs to get Fair Trade certification on the packaging were prohibitive. Cotton Tree Chocolate and Sustainable Harvest International work together towards making a more sustainable living for these farmers. These beans are not exported to be processed elsewhere. The ingredients for Cotton Tree Chocolate come from Belize. Locals are hired to make chocolate in the very same town as TCGA. Cotton Tree Chocolate is produced and sold only in Belize and works to create a better living for the people of Belize.The Fair Trade labeling requirements favor larger chocolate making companies with deeper pockets without looking at how much is actually being done to help the local community and it's farmers.

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

Hidden in plain sight in the 2008 TransFair USA annual report is an indication of just how different the perception of "FairTrade" is from reality.On page 19, the following numbers are presented in huge type:160,000 farmers impacted$200,000 granted to producer organizationsNot sure whether that's outright grants or premiums, but US$1.25 per farmer doesn't sound like a whole lot, does it?The 2008 Audited Financials (click to download 2008_TFUSA_Audited_Finan... make for some interesting reading - you get a fair sense of where money comes in and where it goes. For example, rent on the Oakland HQ in 2008 was over $500,000. Having visited the TCGA offices in Punta Gorda I can assure you that their rent is a lot less.

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

Read my new post on this topic: Unfair Trade: Is FairTrade Scalable? .For my alternative approach to FairTrade, visit 5percent4farmers .

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

This is good Clay. I've been speaking about this very subject at lectures for several years now and people are generally shocked to learn the details. This issue is quite complicated. You've gone into some detail here with figures that I appreciate.I often had customers in my shop who asked whether I carried fair-trade chocolate (and/or organic) and I spoke to them about this subject. Most people would accept my explanation and buy chocolate but some people would not buy unless it had the fair-trade label.I've never gotten a straight answer from reps from the fair-trade or other companies involved with this issue (rainforest alliance is difficult at best...).I agree with David that you might consider contacting Huffington on this.There are plenty of great and wonderful chocolate makers (bean to bar) that deal directly with growers and pay way above not only market but fair-trade too. Some are contactable on this site.Thanks and I look forward to the follow through...-Mark

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

As once a member of Fair Trade for coffee I found that it does not make a difference in quality of the product and in fact the farmers only receive a small and I mean very small percent. Ask the Fair Trade Org to show you their financial output and you will be banished from their membership. Not really but you will never receive what you ask for! I do believe in assisting these farmers in making more profit but not by using several middleman companies that take most off the top. I actually question what true organic really is. If by the time you receive your product is it still considered organic? Fumes from the cargo area are absorbed by a lot of products. Organic label does not eliminate the entire use of fertilizers but will allow a low % of various types. This is what I have read under guidelines for declaring organic food. Maybe cacao is different, to new in the biz to know really. I do know the farmers deserve better and would be better off dealing direct.

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

David - very interesting suggestion. This is just a part of a larger picture I want to draw that includes my recent experiences in Bolivia and Grenada. When I get done I will definitely follow up. Thanks!:: Clay

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

Clay's intriguing analysis of this problem begs the question of whether there is genuinely any such thing as "fair trade" cacao, or if this noble term accurately applies to any other product involving physical labor (bananas, coffee, sugar, etc.) for that matter. During the Chocolate Retreat in Belize that I attended with him from 2/20-27/10, he referred to at least one cacao distributor who engages in "direct trade" which sounded far more preferable to the bureaucracy and red tape instrinsic to officially labeled "Fair Trade" cacao. If the U.S. Commerce Dept. and the Trade Representative specifically would take concrete action on this human rights issue, then caveat emptor would not be an essential principle for ethical consumerism to thrive among progressively minded activists who want to enjoy these products without being complicit in international human rights abuses. My practical advice to Clay regarding this article is to directly contact Arianna Huffington & ask her to post this article to the Huffington Post at www.huffingtonpost.com , or accept his submission with links included as reference points. Many more millions of politically interested citizens will be alerted to this critical problem on that site and simultaneously attract more readers to this Chocolate site as well. This subject belongs in the HP Green section will I know her staff will welcome this discussion with open arms.

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers

Posted in: Opinion

Great post and great analysis, thanks Clay.