Belgium Chocolate Industry Essay Example for Free

Belgium Chocolate Industry Essay First introduction is when Spanish conquistadors met Azctec king. 1585 first recorded shipment from veracruz to Sevilla, Spain and spread to Europe from there. The first recorded shipment of chocolate to Europe for commercial purposes was in a shipment from Veracruz to Sevilla in 1585. [17] It was still served as a beverage, but the Europeans added cane sugar to counteract the natural bitterness and removed the chili pepper while retaining the vanilla, in addition they added cinnamon as well as other spices. In Spain, it quickly became a court favorite. In a century it had spread and become popular throughout the European continent. [26] To keep up with the high demand for this new drink, Spanish armies began enslaving Mesoamericans to produce cacao. [27] Even with cacao harvesting becoming a regular business, only royalty and the well-connected could afford to drink this expensive import. [28] Before long, the Spanish began growing cacao beans on plantations, and using an African workforce to help manage them. [29] The situation was different in England. Put simply, anyone with money could buy it. [30] The first chocolate house opened in London in 1657. 30] In 1689, noted physician and collector Hans Sloane developed a milk chocolate drink in Jamaica which was initially used by apothecaries, but later sold to the Cadbury brothers in 189715] For hundreds of years, the chocolate-making process remained unchanged. When the Industrial Revolution arrived, many changes occurred that brought about the food today in its modern form. A Dutch familys (van Houten) inventions made mass production of shiny, tasty chocolate bars and related products possible. In the 18th century, mechanical mills were created that squeezed out cocoa butter, which in turn helped to create hard, durable chocolate. 32] But, it was not until the arrival of the Industrial Revolution that these mills were put to bigger use. Not long after the revolution cooled down, companies began advertising this new invention to sell many of the chocolate treats we see today. [33] When new machines were produced, people began experiencing and consuming chocolate worldwide. [34] At the end of the 18th century, the first form of solid chocolate was invented in Turin by Doret. This chocolate was sold in large quantities from 1826 by Pierre Paul Caffarel in Italy. In 1819, F. L. Cailler opened the first Swiss chocolate factory. In 828, Dutchman Coenraad Johannes van Houten patented a method for extracting the fat from cocoa beans and making powdered cocoa and cocoa butter. Van Houten also developed the so-called Dutch process of treating chocolate with alkali to remove the bitter taste. This made it possible to form the modern chocolate bar. The German company Jordan Timaeus sold the first known chocolate bar made from cocoa, sugar and goats milk in 1839. [35] In England, the company,J. S. Fry Sons discovered a way to mix some of the cocoa butter back into the Dutched chocolate, and added sugar, creating a paste that could be moulded. This led to the first British chocolate bar in 1847, followed in 1849 by the Cadbury brothers. Wikipedia In most cases, the answer will be: chocolate – surprisingly or not. But when and how did Belgium become synonymous for top-quality chocolate? The history of Belgian chocolate reaches back as far as the 17th century, when the country was ruled by the Spanish, whose explorers had brought cocoa back from South America. At the time, cocoa was enjoyed as a luxury drink for the royals, nobility and artists who visited the royal courts in Brussels. Interestingly, the story of Swiss chocolate can also be traced back to Brussels. In the late 17th century, Henri Escher, the mayor of Zurich, visited Brussels and fell in love with the cocoa drinks he was served. He was so over the moon that he introduced the idea to Switzerland. Three centuries later, Switzerland remains Belgium’s main competitor when it comes to chocolate. In the centuries that followed, chocolate became increasingly popular amongst a wide public, but it took until the second half of the 19th century for Belgium to truly indulge in its passion for chocolate. Under the rule of King Leopold II, Belgium colonised Congo, where it found its own unlimited cocoa supply. This put Belgium right at the heart of the cocoa trade. Back in Belgium, in 1857, Jean Neuhaus (funnily enough of Swiss origin) had opened a pharmaceutical sweets shop in Brussels, where he also sold bars of bitter chocolate. The first chocolate shop was born. Some 60 years later, it was Neuhaus’ grandson who invented the praline when creating an empty chocolate shell with a sweet filling. So, what makes Belgian chocolate so special, so very delicious and in a league of its own? The secret is two-fold: ingredients and process. Of course, the origin and orientation of the cacao plantation, as well as the roasting of the beans all help to determine the flavour. But the main reason for the pure and full cocoa flavour is the fact that no vegetable shortening is used. Belgian chocolate traditionally mixes cocoa paste, sugar and cocoa butter in varying proportions. Dark Belgian chocolate uses the most cocoa; milk chocolate mixes in milk; and white chocolate is made be extracting only the butter from the cocoa. On the other hand, there is the process, which to date is steeped in tradition and craftsmanship, and still holds a hint of secrecy.

ancient egyption pottery :: essays research papers

Ancient Egyptian Pottery   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I chose to do my research paper on Egyptian pottery because in my art appreciation class I was most fascinated with the ancient Egyptian era. I found this website that explained all about how pottery they made helped them function in everyday use. It also told me a lot about how the made everything.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The need to store things led to the development of containers, first among them bags of fiber or leather, woven baskets and pottery. But clay lends itself to many other purposes: bricks, statuettes, funerary offerings, toys and games etc. Pottery, the molding of form out of a formless mass and its becoming imperishable through firing, is the most miraculous kind of creation. The exquisite artifacts made of gold, carved out of hard stone or formed from glass might make us forget that the Egyptians lived with clay and not the expensive alternatives found in royal tombs. They lived in it, drank from it, cooked in it, ate on it, carried liquids in it, played with it, and when they died, the only offerings of any permanence most could afford were made from it. Most of the pottery manufactured in Egypt was made of reddish brown clay, which is called Nile silt ware. It served everyday purposes and was often left undecorated. The red color of the fired product was the result of iron compounds oxidizing. The oldest pottery technique consisted in hollowing out a lump of clay by hand and pinching it to give it the final form. Later a flat tool was used to press the clay against the other hand. The ancient Egyptians used a number of techniques to improve the look of their pottery. Decorations were incised, painted or stuck on and black coloring was the result of exposing the vessels to smoke. Slip, an often pigmented mixture of water and clay of the consistency of cream, was applied to smooth the surface and color the earthenware. Wash, a mixture of pigment, such as red ochre, and water changed or intensified the color of the pottery. Glazing began during the 4th millennium BCE, mostly blue mezzomaiolica, lead based glazing, until Roman times, when true tin-based faience began to appear. An example of the blue glaze is on the statue of a monkey to the right. The red wares were made without a potter's wheel like all pre-dynastic pottery. After giving them their form, which was sometimes unconventional, they were dried in the sun, sometimes covered with red ochre, and burnished with a stone.

Notes: A Long Way Gone †Ishmael Beah Essay

Chapter 2 notes The imagery in this chapter is a jarring contrast to chapter one when Ishmael played music and went to school and had a loving family. It is filled with memories and dream imagery that are horrifying to both Ishmael and the reader. Chapter 3 notes This chapter is filled with contrasts, especially the days of peace versus the days of war. There is also the contrast of Ishmael cooking dinner as gunshots ring out throughout the town. There is the contrast of people running for their lives over the bodies of those who have fallen. Finally, there is the contrast of a town filled with sounds of life and one filled with fear and death. Ishmael, Junior and the other boys are now officially on the run. Chapter 4 notes This chapter reveals six boys in a desperate condition. They are starving and there is no food anywhere. Because this is the situation when war exists, the boys begin to adapt to their new lives by becoming what they might never have become before. They steal and they never stop to help others for it might mean the loss of their own lives. Chapter 5 notes The boys are finally captured and are nearly killed. Once again, new gunfire saves them and they run for their lives. These near misses make the reader feel like the boys are on borrowed time. Eventually, they will be captured for good or die. It seems inevitable. The idea that they have been awakened from a nightmare or a dream is very poignant. These are just young boys who have been forced by circumstances beyond their control to learn survival tactics when only days before they were growing up together and singing the rap music they loved. Chapter 6 notes This chapter is somewhat of a contrast to the violence of the war. Life continues to go on in the village of Kamator where Ishmael is reminded of life in his own village and how much his brother Junior loved him and cared for him. They were motherless misfits there, and now they are motherless misfits once again. Chapter 7 notes Ishmael is alone because he ran in the other direction from the village therefore making wind up all alone. Chapter 8 notes Ishmael is lonely and is not trusted by anyone and this just reinforces his loneliness and sadness. Chapter 9 notes It seems as if in some ways, the boys lead charmed lives and in others, they face nothing but adversity. They see the beauty of the ocean, only to be forced to walk on sand so hot it burns their feet terribly. They are cared for by a good, decent fisherman, only to be captured by villagers who fear them and want to kill them. Then, unbelievably, the cassette tapes save their lives once more. However, in the end, they desperately need the blessings the fisherman’s mother offered them. Chapter 10 notes In this chapter Ishmael meets some old school friends (Musa, Kanei, Alhaji, Jumah, Saidu and Moriba) in a village which makes Ishmael relieved. The gang find a dead crow and a couple decide to eat it since they are extremely hungry while the others decide not to. Saidu who is one of the ones that ate the crow predicts his own death and it comes true. They then come across an odd village with just one big house Ishmael even as he feels happiness as he learns that his family is to be found in the next village. Chapter 11 notes The most poignant aspect of this chapter is the irony of Ishmael finding his family only to lose them once more before he even can see them or say goodbye. His ability to escape capture by the rebels again is almost like the literary deus ex machina (god by way of a machine), a literary device that almost seems contrived. It makes the reader wonder when Ishmael’s luck will run out. Chapter 12 notes This chapter is full of ironies. First, the boys arrive in a village, which seems to be acting normally and living life as they always have. The soldiers are there to protect the village, but the truth is the rebels are greater in number and heading their way. The new army is made up of boys, some as young as seven.

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act - 1445 Words

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) signed into law by president Obama on March 23, 2010 is arguably the most extensive reform of health care law ever to be enacted in the U.S. It will impact the way professionals practice health care, the way insurance companies handle health care as a product, and the way consumers purchase and use health care as a service. The Affordable Health Care Act is primarily aimed at reducing the number of uninsured Americans and reducing the overall costs of health care from an administrative and consumer standpoint. The PPACA requires insurance companies to cover all applicants and offer the same rates to all applicants of the same age†¦show more content†¦This too could lead to a coverage gap in those states. The Act has not been fully instituted yet; it is set to be fully effective by the year 2020, but the provisions that are in effect now have benefited millions of Americans. For example, a little more than three million y oung adults in America who were uninsured have gained coverage by being able to stay on their parent s health plan (HealthCare.gov) and 86,000 Americans with pre-existing conditions are receiving affordable insurance through a temporary plan called the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan (HealthCare.gov). Insurance companies will be made to act more responsibly under the PPACA. They are already being made to spend their money more wisely. For example, the the health insurance companies of 76 million Americans are now required to spend 80% of premiums paid by the insured on improvements to health care. If they do not use 80% of the money paid to them by their customers for that purpose, they will be required to provide rebates to their customers (HealthCare.gov). Nearly 1.1 billion dollars in rebates have been provided to nearly 13 million customers. If insurance companies should feel the need to raise rates by 10% or more, they must publicly justify why they are raising their rate s and the law gives states resources to review and block premium increases of this magnitude (HealthCare.gov). The primary goal of the new healthcare policy is to insure allShow MoreRelatedThe Patient Protection And Affordable Care Act1057 Words   |  5 PagesMaureen Omondi Patrick Gilbert Govt 2305 5 February 2015 The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act The Patient Protection and Affordable care Act also known as Affordable Care Act, Obama Care and ACA is an act signed into law by the current president of the United States, Barack Obama in March 23, 2010. Beginning in 2014, any failure to purchase minimum coverage will result in a person being fined. 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