What better way to satisfy your chocolate cravings than with some mouth watering chocolate statistics!

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Chocolate is a universal treat loved all over the world and if you have tried it in any of its various, delicious, forms, it is not hard to see why! In this blog post, we will take a deep dive into some interesting facts and figures about our favourite sweet treat, so prepare your taste buds for what’s in store, there’s a strong possibility this will make you hungry!

Let’s Start from the Beginning…

Chocolate has a long and fascinating history so before we get to the latest facts and figures, let’s have a quick recap of chocolate through the years – our favourite type of history lesson!

When the first cacao plants were discovered in what is now Mexico over 4 millenia ago, the ancient Mayans and Aztecs thought chocolate was a gift from the gods (can you blame them?!).

The Aztecs in particular were extremely passionate about drinking chocolate and even gave it as a prize to warriors after battle. Cocoa beans were also used during religious rituals and as currency with each bean being considered more valuable than gold. So, next time someone tells you money doesn’t grow on trees – just dazzle them with your knowledge of cacao’s rich history in Central America!

Today…

Over the years our love of chocolate has spread across the globe with industrialisation of the industry turning it into the product we know today! For the majority of us, chocolate is a regular indulgence and it is no surprise that over half of all new products on UK supermarket shelves have some form of chocolate included within them.

Chocolate is evidently a great way to delight your taste buds, but some of the other ways in which it can be used may surprise you. In fact, world famous chocolate company Bosco claims that their chocolate is a great alternative to fake blood… Yes, you read that correctly, fake blood. Now, while some sources dispute this fact, Bosco insist that their chocolate syrup was used as blood in the famous shower scene of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 classic horror movie Psycho. It has also been credited as a fake blood substitute in George Romero’s ‘Night of the Living Dead’. Now that brings a whole new meaning to the phrase, ‘death by chocolate’…

Fun Facts

So what are the most recent developments of this delightful confection? Here are some of our favourite chocolate statistics from last year.

• The global chocolate market is predicted to grow by $41.72billion in the next 5 years! (Research & Markets)
• The first ever chocolate bar ever made is still sold today, in fact it is still the most in demand chocolate in the UK – Cadburys (The Grocer).
• Chocolate has always been a popular snacking option and over half of consumers are reported to be snacking more as a result of Covid-19 (FrontiersIn).
• An interesting trend this year is that more than 55% of consumers are actually keen to spend their money on new and unusual flavours of chocolate rather than the standard dark, milk or white! (FoodBeverageInsider)
• Chocolate statistics show that more than 90% of people don’t know it actually comes from a fruit and not a vegetable! (and no, unfortunately it doesn’t count as one of your five a day).
• White chocolate cannot actually be considered chocolate as it contains no cocoa powder! (VeryWellHealth) 
• A visit to Switzerland would not be complete without some mouth-watering Swiss chocolates. People from all over the world love these tasty treats but it is the Swiss who consume around 19 pounds of it per year making them the highest consumer of chocolate in the world. (Statista)
• Mars Inc the producer of some of our favourite chocolate including Mars Bars, Snickers and Twix, is over 110 years old (Mars, Inc).
• The world loves chocolate, and there is even an annual festival held every July 7th to celebrate it (National Day Calendar).
• Chocolate is not just delicious but also great for your skin! Chocolate contains antioxidants like flavonoids (a type of chemical found naturally within dark foods) and has anti-inflammatory properties, which help to speed up the healing process after an injury or surgery. (Medical News Today).

And finally, our favourite statistics…

• Chocolate with at least 70% cocoa content is actually considered to be good for you! (Biron, 2021) 
• You can reduce stress levels with as little as 48g of 70% chocolate per day as well as improving memory and mood. (Science Daily)
• Chocolate can help trigger the body’s natural immune response. It is also reported to supplement vaccine-induced immunity in a positive way. (Kamei, 2016)

Wrap Up

So there you have it, whether you like dark chocolate or milk, there’s no denying the power of this sweet treat to make people happy! We hope we’ve given you some food for thought as to what makes us love it so much and you’ve learnt something new about this delicious snack. Make sure to share these fun facts with your friends, family, and colleagues because we all need a little more chocolate in our lives!