World Chocolate Day

By Our Special Correspondent

Some like it dark and bitter, others smooth and sweet, but no matter what your flavor preference this World Chocolate Day, on July 7, joins us in taking a bite.

There are many dates throughout the year promoting local, national or international variations of World Chocolate Day – our research leads us to believe that this is the real, definitive, pure 'World Chocolate Day', so celebrate with some high-cocoa, rich, dark chocolate that will make you go deep.

The history of chocolate goes back about 2,500 years. The Aztecs loved their newfound liquid chocolate so much that they believed the god of wisdom, Quetzalcoatl, literally bestowed it upon them.

Cacao seeds also served as a form of currency. Can you imagine going shopping or buying a house with a huge pile of cocoa beans? It would be wonderful, wouldn't it? Nowadays, chocolate is bitter because it was there long before sugar was added. Chocolate took a turn in 16th century Europe and after becoming sweet; chocolate became popular and became one of the favorite treats of many households.

Many of the current chocolate companies began operations in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Cadbury started in England in 1868. And then 25 years later Milton S. Hershey, who bought chocolate processing equipment at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, is now one of the world's largest and world-renowned chocolate creators.