Hello everyone –
Just curious if anyone has experience building/using a DIY/home-made ball mill, along the lines of this (links to YouTube video).
I'm currently investigating the subject strictly for small scale production (no more than 10 kg at a time).
Any experience, thoughts, opinions welcome! Thanks.
Thanks, Sebastian. You're right, the challenges in cocoa-producing countries are enormous. Agreed. I took issue with your characterization that dried cocoa beans in a hermetic environment need to be exposed to "airflow" - if this is what you were suggesting? The reason hermetic bags work so well in a damp, wet, hot container that is in port/at sea for 2-12 weeks is precisely because the hermetic environment protects the beans from air and moisture ingress.
Technology only works when it's accessible and properly used. For hermetic storage to work properly, the bean needs to be dried to the correct moisture content, the hermetic bag needs to be closed (sealed) properly, and the bag cannot be damaged by a loading hook. Agreed. These are real issues in producing countries. But as buyers demand better quality beans and the producers hope to link to these markets - they are seeking to improve their practices. And they are. Once they do - hermetic is outstanding for controlling infestation and preserving quality. No "airflow" needed!
Jordan - i have no intention of getting into an argument, and I'd classify my comments as being exceptionally well informed, from a few decades of experience with statistical, primary peer reviewed research with global organizations that have been replicated over many geographies, at the hundreds of millions of tons scale. I respect your business and have nothing against either it (or you). I'm certainly open to reviewing new research, and routinely welcome (and am asked) to review experimental designs, analysis, and conclusions. I also routinely find that there are those who have strongly held conclusions without having the data to back them up; or have acquired data in a way that is effectively useless due to flawed experimental design - one ends up collecting data that they believe is something other than what it actually is. If the data is in question, then of course the conclusions that were drawn from it are in question as well.
If one is able to dry every single cocoa bean to precisely 7.5% moisture, and vacuum out the atmosphere from the contents (and it's moisture) - then the risk of moisture related problems may be mitigated. In any given bag of agricultural commodity prepared in a 3rd world rain forest environment, i can assure you that not every single bean is precisely 7.5% moisture, and there is far more bean to bean variation than one realizes. I can also assure you that most moisture testing tools are not routinely calibrated for accuracy in that 3rd world environment (meaning their results are quite variable), and that even if they were, post testing moisture migration from the environment changes the actual moisture content of the beans once the testing has been completed anyway (it may rain on them. they don't sit in environmentally controlled warehouses, so condensation may form during transit from one storage vehicle to another. when they're moved they may be tarped to prevent rainfall contacting them, but the tarps are torn. how many cargo ship holds have you placed data loggers in to understand the RH conditions as the vessel transits from a subequatorial location to an equatorial to a northern one to understand the localized environmental changes that are occurring below the water line, while assessing how intact your sheathing material remained after being moved by numerous dock workers with a hook/crane configuration? What if the rest of the material in the hold is high moisture, and by some chance of fate all your beans were exactly 7.5% moisture, but the hook that placed them into the hold scraped the sheathing and tore a hole? etc. )
I humbly offer my knowledge - folks here can do accept it, reject it, or challenge it. What I will not do is argue or attack the knowledge of others.
Dear Sebastian, I'm having trouble following the conversation, but a couple of your comments about hermetic storage and dried commodities are completely uninformed - or I'm misinterpreting what you are saying. Properly dried commodities - whether coffee, cocoa (7.5% MC) or grains - do NOT NEED airflow. The point of hermetic is to restrict both airflow and moisture ingress. Yes, the temp and RH of a container - or a bag - go up and down over the course of a trans-oceanic journey. When packed in jute, commodities take on this moisture. When packed hermetically in GrainPro SuperGrainbags, they do not take on significant moisture. Many studies have been conducted on this issue (here's a recent one ). Please read it's findings about moisture migration.
What you are saying - that dried cocoa beans need airflow - is exactly what many in the specialty coffee sector argued 8-10 years ago. After they tried hermetic - they realized they were wrong and this has also been widely documented. Please see Flavio Borem's work in Brazil. Please see the millions of bags of specialty coffee and cocoa that are shipped hermetically every year.
You are clearly highly knowledgeable about cocoa - but your comments on hermetic storage/shipping are off-base. Again, I apologize if I'm misinterpreting your last post. Cocoa exporters/traders are using hermetic GrainPro bags to ship their beans across the globe - and the hermetic environment does control infestation and does maintain the quality, color and aroma of the bean for an extended period. Those are just the facts. There are no "alternative facts" - as Kellyanne Conway believes!
I see what you mean. Rainforest just don't belong into the containers at sea 
Thanks for the clarification.
very important. If you've hermetically sealed your beans at origin, you've trapped both the moisture in the beans and the moisture in the air (humidity) inside the wrapping. When you ship that material, they are likely to experience significant temperature drops, either from being in the hold of a ship, or via the transit route the ship takes, resulting in the dew point being reached, and that moisture condensing. I've literally seen it rain inside a shipping container that was not vented. The story ends, as you can imagine, with a green, fuzzy, moldy mess.
Airflow is important because, as with airflow in a solar dryer, it prevents a localized accumulation of moisture by sweeping it away.
That sounds fun, Kerry. And I checked the itinerary again and the cruise is available only for the summer holidays. I wish to book the trip for summer.
Hello!
After 2 years of living and working in Colombia, I finally have access to some cacao and an affordable way to ship it.
I have a small chocolate factory in Medellin. We are origencacao.com.
I have 4 different beans that I am working with right now, all are available on a regular basis in small and large lots. I purchase directly from the farmer, indigenous tribe, or co-op. I pay above market prices for quality beans.
Tumaco: These beans are from a small Co-Op of 20 families. The beans are all processed in one fermenting station supervised by someone trained at the university and Fedecacao in the art of fermentation. The beans arrive clean and presorted. These beans are a wonderful true chocolate flavor, well balanced with a hint of tree nut. I use these beans for all my cacao products (nibs, nut clusters, etc) and for a 74% chocolate bar, and a 55% chocolate that I make filled bars and barks with.
Santander: These beans come from farms bordering the Rio Carare, in what was very dangerous territory not long ago. Most are brought to market via mule and river boat. I find these beans to have notes of red fruits and a hint of floral. I use these beans for a 67% chocolate bar that is a best seller. These beans come from a mix of old and new trees.
Antioquia: These beautiful beans are new to me from a wonderful farmer in Maceo. He has an old farm where you can find trees as old as 60 years. He is currently working with Fedecacao to create new hybrids for this particular region. With a high percentage of porcelana beans, these beans are very delicate. Max of this bean is 100 kilos a month.
Sierra Nevada: I have been working with friends from the Arhuaco Tribe of the Sierra Nevada to develop their beans for export. While still a bit rough, these beans are grown with beautiful intent, lovingly cared for by indigenous people. They believe in protecting the earth and sharing their beliefs through their crops and crafts.
Cocoa Butter: Raw, unfiltered, un-deodorized.
Please note that all the cacao I use is Organic. However, it is not certified as no one in Colombia can afford those certifications. I have been to all the farms and know their processes. The cacao is grown naturally, as it always has been.
You can find more information on the website. I also host folks for bean to bar private classes in my home and factory, and can facilitate farm visits for all my origens as well as others.
Cacao available raw, roasted, or as nibs. I can make some coverture, but my capabilities are not huge at the moment.
I should have the webstore at origencacao.com up and running this week, you will be able to buy beans, and all my cacao products via the website or amazon.
Shipping is via FedEx, 2 days to the US.
Please email me with any questions.
Danielle
No, thank you.
Hello,
Have you sold your Bakon tempering Equipment? If not I would be interested in photos and details.
Thank you
Hello
Sorry if i did not responded before.
Are you still interested with the tempering machine?
Crio Bru is made from ground roasted cocoa beans. No shell involved.
Ah my mistake, I'm not sure why I thought it was shell.
Sebastian - is it important for the dried but raw cacao beans to have airflow? If yes, why? Because of the moisture content of about 7%?
Thanks for your input.
Happy Weekend from Indo...
carl - i suspect that the bottom of the pallet is open, allowing airflow? IE the bottom of the pallet has not been shrinkwrapped, so the unit as a whole is not hermetically sealed..
Thanks for the input Carl. From their website, they look as they work with quite advanced equipment. Actually the idea with vacuuming to persevere the beans from damage that would otherwise probably occur when they are loose in a bag, does make somehow sense to me...
Villa Andina from Peru ships their cocoa beans in a shrink wrapped bag and I have never had problems of molding or moths from them. They put 3 shrink wrapped bags in a box and then ship a pallet full of boxes and you dont get the damage you get from bags on a pallet.
that doesn't look at all like a central or south american metals profile to me.
i'd never advise you to do something consumable with the shell. you are likely nowhere near being in control of your supply chain, which means what you will recieve over time will almost assuredly be different than the snapshot you take at your analysis. mycotoxins will be a concern.
Vacuum would be more expensive than simply printing the mold. Which has been confirmed is possible and allowed :D
Have you considered vacuuming forming the mold? You could 3D print the positive then vacuum form polycarbonate over it. If you have access to a vacuum former its probably the easiest and cheapest option
If I read and understand the results of this test correctly the cadmium content is 1.57 micro gram per gram.
In Australia the limit for cadmium content in the chocolate is 0.5 micro gram per gram. Some other countries have similar limits some have no limits.
If the cadmium content in the nib was at the same level as in the shell you could use these beans to make a chocolate with cocoa mass content of no more than 30%.
Fortunately usually cadmium content in the nibs is lower than in the shell, but it should be tested before use.
Do companies like Crio Bru not have to prove their products are safe for consumption?
Crio Bru is made from ground roasted cocoa beans. No shell involved.
We are going to bring the husk in for another analysis, which could happen after more people weigh in. Then we can focus on other compositions
I don't know if that cadmium amount is anything to worry about. Any technical people care to comment?
Kyle, can you share the origin for the beans?
As leaded gasoline is phased out, lead is less of an issue. Cadmium is still worrisome because of volcanic soils.
Did you analyze for moulds, by any chance?
I mentioned a while ago about having a lab analyze our husk, and it happened shortly thereafter. It took a while to remember to put the results online, so here they are. We gave two samples, one as the husk, and the other as the husk ground. From what we were told, there is nothing concerning about lead in the husks we gave. We were also told the makeup was similar in a sense to a banana peel.
Anyways, For those who are interested here it is. Would love to hear your thoughts.
We are a non-profit that proudly works with cacao farmers in rural Nicaragua. The quality that they produce is absolutely astounding, and delicious!
We would love to get in contact with anyone looking to purchase raw, organic, and sorted Nicaraguan cacao by the pound. We're also interested in what other members of this community are doing in terms of purchasing cacao, community involvement, traceability of your cacao, and socially aware partnerships with your cacao farmers.
Head on over to our page, Enliven International, to learn more about what we do or to contact us to talk about purchasing!
Here is a link to some information on the differences.
It is true that if you get 3-phase now you will either have to make sure that the place you move to has 3-phase installed or you get a phase converter installed ... you might be able to negotiate that into the lease (I would).
Letting the equipment supplier know is exactly where I am. I have the option and there are no additional costs to purchase one versus the other-which is a positive surprise.
At the place I will be using the equipment access to phase 3 power is available. I anticipate a move in 1-2 years because of location access to shipping options. If I go with 3 phase I will have to make certain the next locale has it.
The details are all an education to me. Is it a different motor that is installed choosing one type over the other or is it the wear and tear on the same motor that distinguishes the choice? If the motor is more robust in a 3 phase why is the single phase more (usually) expensive?
I have 6 molds in perfect condition
Each mold measures 8" by 10"
Each mold has 8 cavities
The price is $10.00 which includes shipping
They are Life Of The Party K162
Located in New York City
You can see and purchase them here:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/132070639557?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649
The 3-phase machine will be more energy efficient when compared with a single-phase machine, and because of the way they are built, 3-phase motors are likely to be more robust than single-phase motors. A 3-phase machine could also potentially be less expensive than a single-phase machine.
This assumes that the location you are in has 3-phase 220V power installed.
If it does (and you have the space in your panel) - it always makes sense to go for the 3-phase machine. If you do not have 3-phase installed, it is almost always cheaper to go with a single-phase machine than to either a) get 3-phase installed, or b) get a rotary phase converter.
Getting 3-phase installed can cost tens of thousands of dollars and take months and months and is often (in my experience) up to the whim of the local electric company. While it might be nice to use a static phase converter, because of the changing reactive loads in the tempering machine (compressor, heaters, stop/start of motors), a static phase converter is not the best choice. Rotary phase converters can easily cost well over $1000 (depending on the loads in the tempering machine) which is lots of kilowatt hours of electricity. So - you have to weigh the lifetime savings cost against the CapEx of the phase converter.
Note that you do have to let your equipment supplier know in advance which you need - as the power cord used to connect to the supply will be different. The cord in a 3-phase machine will have four wires, whereas a single-phase machine will have just three wires, and you need to wire the plug, socket, and panel accordingly. Because code.
You can always connect a single-phase machine to a 3-phase panel, the reverse is not true.
I am in New York City and selling an Insulated Styrofoam Cooler Shipping Container 12" x 12" x 11 1/2". It was used once to ship chocolates.
Originally purchased from Uline. It is clean, odorless and has no scratches.
The price is $12.00 +shipping. See photos by clicking below
http://www.ebay.com/itm/-/132111105405?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
shrink wrap table by now go international can wrap baskets boxes gifts anything that you need to cover plastic with heat gun and heat sealing wand Included located in New Jersey contact info Francine email is Lickerishtheclown@gmail.com. 350$
Well, the FDA came back with an answer. The first answer was kinda bunk, gave me an application for a new Contact Surface.
However, I asked them more directly and got a response back. Essentially if the printer itself and the materials can be safe, it is ok with the FDA. The onus is on the manufacturer (you in this case) to follow FDA guidelines for food safety.
PETG is a filament that is now regularly available. I would imagine research would be needed to find out if the colors are food safe, but clear/natural PETG would be recommended. PETG can be sterilized by going through the dishwasher and withstands high heat.
Polycarbonate is another filament that is considered to be an exotic filament at the moment. It's available but more expensive than PETG and it's only available from some companies. PC can be sterilized through dishwashing procedures and it can withstand high heat.
Printer extruders and hot ends can be made out of stainless steel or printed via PC or PETG for food contact safety.
This all being said, 3d printers arent exactly user friendly and you would still need to learn CAD or 3d modeling of some sort to do this completely DIY. Luckily for me, that's my background. I was just wondering if there are others attempting this and how it's working out for you. I just ordered my first 3d printer and expect to have a foodsafe printer capable of printing in Polycarbonate sometime over the summer.
I'm kind of excited that these breakthroughs have been made and that it seems that a reasonable cost for custom chocolate molds. The designs also dont have to be awkward to handle because there's no need for injection molding support and structure in the mold. This can make the mold smaller or be able to support more cavities than is usually available in a given commercial mold.
A manually fed impact mill for processing cocoa nib into coarse liquor in a three-stage grinding process .
Includes:
Three interchangeable grinding screens.
Hardened grinding screens and impact hammers.
Control panel on separate stand.
Variable speed drive.
Emergency Stop.
Guarded product infeed for safety.
Specifications:
Capacity: Approximately 15kgs/30lbs per hour of winnowed nib through all 3 screens, depending on bean characteristics (finished liquor +/- 100 microns average)
Footprint: 36 in. x 36 in. (includes area for control panel)
Electrical: 230 V, 1 ph, 15 amps
Materials of Construction: Stainless steel
Like new
More pictures, video and information on request
For Sale 2 like New Chocolate Temperature and Humidity Control cabinets.
Technomac Brand Italy is one of the most recognized and quality equipments in Europe.
These cabinets are the perfect equipment for any Chocolatier.
Large size can contain 50 sheet pan on each. European size.
Sold with 100 aluminum sheet pan.
Can be used as refrigerator or Chocolate Cabinet. Alarm programable. Different Programs.
Owner Manuals on hands.
Works on 220V single phase.
Lightly used and they are like new. Working perfectly.
Selling because we need some space for larger equipments.
We can palletize and help for shipping.
$7,000 per unit OBO
Selma One 12KG Continuous Tempering Machine in Excellent Condition - Only 2 Year Old - Sydney, Australia
We are selling our first much loved Selmi One automatic tempering machine. We have just upgraded to a larger temperer in our Sydney based chocolate factory and have no need for this one anymore. It will make a fine addition to a small chocolate factory or patisserie. When we first got it, it changed our lives! It has been taken very well care of and is in excellent condition.
Selmi One 12KG continuous automatic tempering machine in excellent condition and only 2 years old (bought from new - cost $15,950 all in). We are selling it for $11,995 (inc GST).
Hi, interested in both and can pick up. Are they still available?
It depends a lot on what type of tempering machines you use.
Some of them can be taken apart and cleaned which means a fair bit of work but wide range of applications. Other tempering machines can be only flushed which means that they can be used for milk and dark chocolate (no white) and while it requires less work it creates a quantity of "rework" chocolate.
Hi Andy,
I'm at jordandey@grainpro.com...
Hi
We are medium-sized company based in Manchester UK. We are growing and like to buy tempering machines.
Does anybody can advise us how to work with only one or two machines while working with more type of chocolate - dark, milk, white and mix of them.
Thank you
Raanan
Hello,
If you haven't found exactly what you're looking for just yet, you may find a small local print shop that can produce sleeves using a color laser printer and an affordable cutting die.
Applying transfer tape to the long edge of the sleeve will allow you to easily construct the sleeve on an as-needed basis. Doing your packaging in this way will allow you to keep your costs very low, allow you to produce multiple designs at once AND give you the ability to create the perfect design (including full color).
Marc
Scan.pdf - 9.9MB
