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The $100 billion treat: how chocolate took over the world

The astonishing numbers behind the world's favourite confection
What is the global chocolate market worth?
How much chocolate does the world consume?
What is the biggest chocolate market by country?
Which countries consume the most chocolate per capita?
Which countries consume the most chocolate per capita?
Which countries consume the most chocolate per capita?
Why is chocolate so popular?
What types of chocolate are most popular?
The importance of flavour
Chocolate contains over 800 chemical compounds and has 400 distinct aromas
How did chocolate become so popular?
A gift from the Gods
The origin of the word
Chocolate comes to Europe
Modern chocolate is developed
Chocolate enters the mainstream
How much cacao goes into making chocolate?
What are the major cacao-producing countries?
Côte d’Ivoire's key cash crop
Smallholder farmers dominate the global cacao-growing industry
Around 1.5 million children work in the cacao industry in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana
Most cacao farmers have never tasted chocolate
Fairtrade chocolate represents a tiny proportion of the global chocolate market
What are the major chocolate-producing countries?
Who are the leading wholesale chocolate manufacturers?
Where is the world's biggest chocolate factory?
Who are the major retail chocolate companies?
Big Chocolate's big profits
Why have chocolate prices been surging?
What is the most expensive chocolate?
Other most expensive chocolate records
Why is chocolate becoming endangered?
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Nik Merkulov/Shutterstock

The astonishing numbers behind the world's favourite confection

There's no denying it: chocolate is one of the most popular foods in the world. You probably don't think about the multibillion-dollar industry behind your favourite sweet treat, but it's not just a "world of pure imagination" (to quote Willy Wonka). It's also a world of mind-blowing numbers, rising costs, and in some cases, exploitation.

Read on for our round-up of astonishing chocolate facts and statistics, from the nations that consume the most to how much the priciest bars cost. Plus, find out why this much-loved indulgence is endangered – and could even become extinct – in the not-too-distant future...

All dollar amounts in US dollars. 

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Daniel Coughlin

21 March 2024

Features

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