Forum Activity for @Steven Lawrence

The warranty is not transferable. The machine is in mint condition.

These have been discontinued by the CK a while back and nobody seems to make a bar mold like it.  We will buy whatever number you have.  ilya@luvicecream.com

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Thomas, I think the advice you were given by CDPH is correct. Specifically: Organic Chocolate is regulated food product in California, rules enforced by CDPH,  think you will find if your gross sales are over $5000 and you have organic in your label (even made with organic...) you are required to register  see:

ORGANIC OVERSIGHT - LAWS AND REGULATIONS:

Laws relating to the handling of organic foods are codified in the federal Organic Foods Production Act of 1990, the California Organic Products Act of 2003 (COPA), and the National Organic Program (NOP) Regulations (which California adopts).

The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) work cooperatively with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to enforce the organic regulations within California.  CDPH oversees processors and handlers of organic food, pet food, and cosmetics, and CDFA oversees organic agricultural production, milk and dairy food processing, meat and poultry processing, and retail organic production activities.

If an operation’s annual gross sales of organic food is greater than $5,000 they are required to obtain certification from an accredited third party certifier, who will verify the sourcing of the agricultural inputs, verify the organic content of processed products, and ensure that operations are conforming with NOP regulations

Organic is a term that indicates that the food or agricultural product has been produced using sustainable practices and without synthetic fertilizers, sewage sludge, irradiation, or genetic engineering.  Products may be labeled “100% organic”, “organic” or “made with organic.” 

Food products labeled as “100% organic” must consist entirely of organic ingredients; food products labeled “organic” must consist of 95% certified organic ingredients; and food products labeled “made with organic” must contain at least 70% certified organic ingredients (minus water and salt).  Food products containing 95% or more organic content may use the USDA Organic Logo on their product labels or advertising.  Unless exempted or excluded under the National Organic Program (NOP) rules, all organic food products must be certified by an accredited certifying agency (ACA), and the ACA must be identified on the product label.

Does one need to be Organic certified in order to note an ingredient as Organic? I know you have to be certified to say 'Organic' or 'Made with Organic Ingredients', or use the USDA Organic symbol on the front label. I thought anyone can list an ingedient as Organic if the ingredient is certified. I'm in California and have been told by someone at the health department that I can't unless I'm certified. Although I have seen other chocolates labeled this way and I do not think they were certified producers. I've read lots of info on the FDA website and it seems to me that I should be able to do so. However, California has its own Organic certification as well. Just thought I would post the question here in case anyone on this forum knows. Thanks.

Interestingly, the Mast Bros have an FDA exemption filed which expires 11/05/2016.

The current FDA guidance pasted below, as I thought it might be interesting to some, actually raises some other questions.... Retailer exemption,  versus small wholesaler and product type.

Upon reading the rule it appears that sales of more than 100,000 units per year triggers a requirement for the mandated labeling.   A lawyer specializing in FDA regs could perhaps argue that each type of bar warrants an exemption as a different item, but personally I think knocking out several hundred thousand bars a year under the same brand name is probably the point at which you will need to start nutritional labeling.

Section 403(q) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act requires that packaged foods and dietary supplements bear nutrition labeling unless they qualify for an exemption.

Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations (21 CFR) 101.9(j)(1) and 21 CFR 101.9(j)(18) outline the requirements for a small business nutrition labeling exemption for foods. The small business nutrition labeling exemption requirements for dietary supplements are outlined in 21 CFR 101.36(h)(1) and 21 CFR 101.36(h)(2).

The nutrition labeling exemptions found in 21 CFR 101.9(j)(1) and 21 CFR 101.36(h)(1) apply to retailers with annual gross sales of not more than $500,000, or with annual gross sales of foods or dietary supplements to consumers of not more than $50,000. For these exemptions, a notice does not need to be filed with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The nutrition labeling exemptions for low-volume products found in 21 CFR 101.9(j)(18) and 21 CFR 101.36(h)(2) apply if the person claiming the exemption employs fewer than an average of 100 full-time equivalent employees and fewer than 100,000 units of that product are sold in the United States in a 12-month period. For these exemptions, a notice must be filed annually with FDA.

If a person is not an importer, and has fewer than 10 full-time equivalent employees, that person does not have to file a notice for any food product with annual sales of fewer than 10,000 total units.

A "product" is a food or dietary supplement in any size package; which is manufactured by a single manufacturer or which bears the same brand name; which bears the same statement of identity, and which has similar preparation methods.

A "unit" is a package, or if unpackaged, the form in which the product is offered for sale to consumers.

A "firm" includes all domestic and international affiliates.

That's a lot of chocolate bars, estimating they will need to shift at least 35,000 bars a month to generate that sort of gross profit, let alone get a return on investment.  The FDA annual sales cut off  for labeling exemption is $500k total, I believe.  Clearly, as you mention the turn over is going to be way above.  Actually, the MB aren't the only US based craft maker ramping up sales volume.  Resultantly, I'd predict that all craft makers can increasingly expect FDA enforcement action on misbranded / deficiently labelled product, particularly if any food borne illness or undeclared allergy issues occur.  

The 2016 introduction of the FDA's FSMA act brings us all further into their viewfinder, even small firms will need to take steps to implement the required sourcing controls in 2017 - 18. The FSMA was in part a response to salmonella outbreaks (all be it salad and peanut related) but given that raw cacao is an imported item that can be be a source of salmonella sp.,  we will need to deal with the requirements of the FSMA.   

Interestingly, MB  also now make / sell bars in my old home town, London UK.  The existing EU labeling rules would apply to them in the UK I assume?   Don't craft makers in the UK have to label per EU rules?   Anyone bought a MB UK bar recently, does it have the required nutritional / allergy and best by info I wonder?  

For point of reference, I'm looking at some Willie's Cacao bars my wife brought me home from a recent UK trip, full ingredient and nutritional panel / allergy warning and production lot date and best by date.    Isn't this minimum required?   

Thoughts / comments

The Selmi One was just ordered and received a few months ago, and the Plus is just over a year old. The Selmi One is a Single phase, and the Plus is a Three phase with a converter that we purchased. Both machines work beautifully, look perfect, and have never had a problem. They both come with their detachable vibrating tables.

Sale Prices:

Selmi Plus - $12,500 (includes converter)

Selmi One - $8,900

Contact olivia@bkchocolate.com if you're interested or have any questions.

Is the warranty transferable?

It is. I'm in Portland OR. Give me a call @ 503-896-0614

Hi Steven, is the EZTemper still available? If so, where are you located? Thanks. Quinn.

Hello Jean,

Yes the multiSPRAY and volumeSPRAY can be used to spray on large pans, avoiding waste of material and saving time, compared to brushing or other methods.

Our volumeSPRAY also comes with a suction tube extension, that can provide a direct feed from a large floor container.

Hope this helps but if you have any further questions, just let me know.

Kind regards,

KREA Swiss

I'm not an expert on food safe materials but my understanding is: A material is food safe if it does not react or leach unsafe chemicals, or unsafe levels, into the food. For example, Food cans are coated on the inside with a food safe material so that the contents do not react with the metal can. Otherwise, one would not only ingest the food, but also some of the elements of the can itself. Here's a link to some info by the FDA: http://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/PackagingFCS/ucm064166.htm.

This discussion brings up a question I have had for a long time:  What exactly determines if a container or a substance is food-safe?  What, for example, makes polycarbonate molds food-safe?  Stainless steel bars used for slabbed ganaches?  One food wrap vs. another?  A plastic sold as a tablecloth vs. a similar plastic sold as a tarp?  In the particular question in this thread, why would the tin not be food-safe?  I have not been able to find definitive information on this topic.

Clay - Thanks so much for your time and answer! Good question about the tin...I'll have to think on that one. 

Thanks again for your feedback, much appreciated!

The Bros  announced that they're leasing 65,000 square feet inside the Brooklyn Navy Yard’s $68 million Green Manufacturing Center. [ Gothamist got it wrong, saying that the Bros had signed a 68 million dollar lease. ]

Anyone have thoughts on what this means for the craft bean-to-bar chocolate community? 

The 6,000SF DTLA factory is not quite ready to rock, as apparently they don't have all the permits necessary to start production. I did a back-of-the-napkin calculation based on the number of grinders I could see in the photos posted on the Instagram account for their launch party, estimated salaries for the number of employees reported (about 15), and a reasonable ground rent based on comparables in the Arts District , and it looks like they need to generate a gross profit  (not gross sales) of north of $100k/mo to break even.

The investors have deep pockets and a corresponding appetite for risk. I wonder if they realize that they no longer qualify for the FDA small business nutrition labeling exemption and will act accordingly. I know it doesn't match their design aesthetic, but that's not an argument/excuse.

If there were just a few errors in grammar and translation it would be one thing. But the errors appear on every page, often many times on the same page.

But, far more troubling are the factual errors and the editorial inconsistencies that are present throughout the book.

You may like and enjoy the book and find it useful. I won't say anything to negate your experience of the book. I am sharing my impressions and insights that (as a published author) it's really hard to do a book at this scale with very little help. The results show that there was very little help, and the book - and the chocolate community - suffers from that lack. 

Your suggestion worked great, the grit went away from just a short time of grinding. Thanks

24" Diameter Stainless Steel Revolving Pan in excellent condition for $ 2500.00. 

Easy to use for panning fruit or nuts in chocolate.

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Cat -

Perfectly acceptable to put product in a food-safe inner bag inside an outer pack that is not.

One question might be how non-food-safe the tin is because people might empty out the contents of the inner bag into the tin once opened.

I know people who think highly of PBW - professional brewers wash - from Five Star Chemicals.

Looks like your chocolate is not properly crystallized plus no adequate cooling. Do you put your molds in the cooler? That is important to complete the crystallization. 

Thanks for the feedback, everybody!

Since my first query, I've adjusted my methods a bit.  I am making small batches (6-8 oz) at a time to test flavors, because I did not have a large amount of chocolate to use until today. Thankfully I've finally set my wholesale account up, and am ready to go. I am now using guittard organic chocolate wafers. Today's experiments are with a 66% cacao. 

I put each bowl (with micro doses of flavor oils) over warm water, so that the chocolate would not fall out of temper, and made sure to warm my tools for each batch as well. I mixed as well as possible... I did see just a little bit of streaking in some of the batches, but no bloom so far! I let them set in a room which was cooler than mine. The milk I made yesterday, one of the moulds did have some bloom, so I've got to go back and re-mould one variety. I did not add any additional fats, as my extraction team has told me that I shouldn't need to activate my cannabis oils before adding to the chocolate, hooray for one less step.

One of my issues was the baffle for the Chocovision Rev V... the temp I was receiving from the machine was 2-4 degrees off of what both digital & analog thermometers read. I am using the "holey" baffle and it seems to be better. The tempering machine company is sending me a replacement baffle.

Today I started out with a floor model air conditioner, which I have positioned in front of the speed rack where I am now able to set my chocolates. This makes a huge difference in the ambient temp of the room already... from 75* yesterday to a balmy 69. Also the fan is blowing the cool air right over the moulds.

I think some of my problem was also in relation to my moulds being a little bit dirty. I have since bought several soft paintbrushes and am double-washing them with Dawn dish detergent. 

What dish detergent/soap do yous guys prefer?

Again, thank you for the feedback and troubleshooting help. 

Hey folks- Thinking about new packaging and wanted to run a question by the forum to be double certain. I'd like to pack panned choc in FDA approved food contact safe compo-stable "plastic" bags. These bags would then be put in a tin that IS NOT food safe... and then sealed. I figure it's ok as long as the choc doesn't come in contact with the tin...just the bag. Does anyone see any problems with this idea?

Thanks so much for your time!

It makes sense, thanks for your input.

How many molds do you have?

We will take them off your hands

- Ilya

ilya@luvicecream.com

Chocolate inside the grinder would make the mass flow, and get sugar under those wheels. This is a "wet-grinder", after all. To get fine sugar without additions you would need another kind of mill.

I usually can get most of the chocolate out with a spatula while it's still warm, taking out only the wheels.

Yes, I wanted to powder the sugar so when I used it in chocolate it would take away the grit but it didn't work so am asking if there is a better way. I would prefer not to grind the chocolate and sugar in my grinder because I know chocolate is fairly hard to clean in it as the drum is not removable. I would rather do chocolate batches in my tempering machine as it is much easier to clean after the batch is complete as every part is removable and doesn't weigh 200 pounds. Plus if I did chocolate in the grinder I would then still need to put it into the tempering machine anyway as well.

If there are any suggestions please let me know or would it be best to just process the chocolate and sugar together in the grinder and then temper it? 

So, this was completely dry, and you want to make powdered sugar?

The grinder is a spectra 40 stone grinder, i did not grind the sugar and chocolate in it but only the sugar which was completely clean before using. I normally do not use it for chocolate but only use it to process coconut and nut butters. I processed it for a full day and since it still wasn't fine enough I tried to also use the vitamix but it doesn't hold enough so it had to be done in many smaller batches.

What grinder are you using and did you clean it before adding chocolate and sugar?

I've been trying out batches using organic cane sugar instead of the honey I am used to using.  The first batch was quite gritty so i stone ground the sugar in the second batch overnight, it still seemed a little gritty so I also used a vitamix to process through it and it seemed fine so I used it but still have that gritty texture in the chocolate.

How do you get sugar to a consistency that will be smooth in the final product? 

You don't actually create the classified in this post. You create a separate post.

**THIS ITEM IS NOW SOLD**

I have a Design & Realisation confectionary guitar (7.5mm base) available for sale. It comes with the following cutting frame sizes: 15mm, 22.5mm, 30mm, and 37.5mm. 

All tools, extra wire, and two pick-up trays included.

Retails for $3,400 CDN. Asking $1,500 CDN + shipping.

I am based in British Columbia, Canada

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For Sale - W.C.Smith Chocolate Enrober 7' - South Jersey

Thanks Clay for the information. 

New - Never Used.

Purchased from Chocolat-Chocolat.

Mold design: cacao pod .

Size 4 15/16 x 2 3/8 x 3/8

4 cavity 2 ounce.

Cost new is listed as $18.54 per mold.

Sell for $8.00 a mold.

All sales final with no returns.

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In my experience, coconut sugar in dark chocolate has an unpleasant aftertaste..

I am trying to create a few non raw bars but am having trouble finding decent suppliers in Canada. Our low dollar value and shipping costs makes it really hard to use any suppliers outside the country until I am able to order pallet quantities.  All the suppliers I currently use carry only raw cacao products. I do prefer to use organic and fair trade products but if none are available then would be willing to settle. I need somewhere that can do decent prices on 55 or 66 pound blocks. I'd rather mix everything from scratch rather than using couverture so finding cocoa liquor and butter would be great. Thanks for anyone who can help out.

Hard to argue with that.  I am also looking for the best alternative to step out of the "hobby" melangers and into a real machine.  Then on to the tempering machine. In answer to your question, I have no idea.

I mean Santha 11,20 and bigger..

There is no point to purchase belt when it can fit just to small malengers. I aim to enlarge my business

Not sure what you mean by "bigger machines" but they work well on the 1.5L and 2 L premier wonder wet grinders.

Thank you!

Anyone knows if the 3/8'' will fit also bigeer machines? The shipping is not cheap..