American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

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Permalink Reply by cybele on April 23, 2008 at 2:52pm

ADM is a huge agri-food conglomerate, similar to Cargill.

It stands for Archer Daniels Midland.

Here's info on their Candy & Chocolate division:

http://www.admworld.com/naen/food/candy.asp

For the record, here's Cargill's info:

http://www.cargill.com/products/food/ps_cocoa.htm

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Permalink Reply by Lowe on April 23, 2008 at 2:18pm

I'm adding these from the other discussion of worldwide bean to bar makers:
Jacques Torres
Kraft
Nestle

Complete list
Amano
Ambrosia (ADM-owned, bean-to-couverture)
Askinosie
Bittersweet Chocolate Cafe (Seneca is doing some really micro-batch bars)
Blommer
Chocolate Haven (Jacques Torres)
Cioccolato (located in Wyoming and Mexico--bean-to-bonbon)
DeVries
De Zaan (ADM-owned, bean-to-couverture)
Escazu Chocolates (just starting to release a bean-to-bar line)
Fearless Chocolate Company (raw)
Ghirardelli (Owned by Lindt in Switzerland)
Guittard
Jacques Torres
Kraft
Mars
Mast Brothers
Merkens (ADM-owned, bean-to-couverture)
Nestle
Original Hawaiian Chocolate Factory (also grows their beans on American soil)
Patric Chocolate
Peters (Cargill-owned, bean-to-couverture)
Rogue Chocolatier
Sacred Chocolate (raw)
Scharffen Berger
Soma Chocolatemaker (actually in Canada)
Taza
Tcho
Theo
Van Leer (Belgian-owned)
Wilbur (Cargill owned, bean-to-couverture)
World's Finest Chocolate

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Permalink Reply by Hallot Parson on April 26, 2008 at 1:57pm

I was told by the guys at Union Machinery (they sell used chocolate manufacturing equipment) that Jacques Torres was selling off all of his from the bean equipment because they were having various issues in making the chocolate. These are the guys that sold him all of the equipment in the first place, so it seems somewhat credible, but the Jacques Torres website still shows bean to bar production. If anyone is in NYC and has the inside scoop on this, I would love to know if its true.

These guys also told me that they have 60 customers who are currently attempting to set up bean to bar production, so we may soon see a flood of bars on the market.
Hallot

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Permalink Reply by Clay Gordon on April 28, 2008 at 11:20am

I would not be surprised that the number is this large, and I think it's a good thing. I have long held the opinion that if a city is large enough to support a micro-brewery or brew-pub (or three) it's large enough to support a micro- to medium-batch chocolate company.

It also would not surprise me that JT is selling off his chocolate-making equipment. The universal grinder/refiner/conche he bought is very noisy and probably can't be run during normal business hours without stressing out the staff and customers.

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Permalink Reply by cybele on April 23, 2008 at 2:48pm

Wilbur makes "bean-to-bar" or other confections that are available to the public, not just couveture to the trade.

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Permalink Reply by Alan McClure on April 23, 2008 at 4:37pm

Hi Cybele,

Good catch. The website isn't clear about that here:
http://www.wilburchocolate.com/

But I did a little checking and found this:
http://www.wilburbuds.com/

Updated List:

Amano Artisan Chocolate
Ambrosia (ADM-owned, bean-to-couverture)
Askinosie Chocolate
Bittersweet Chocolate Cafe (Seneca is doing some micro-batch bars)
Blommer Chocolate Company
Cioccolato (located in Wyoming and Mexico--bean-to-bonbon)
De Vries Chocolate
De Zaan (ADM-owned, bean-to-couverture)
Escazu Chocolates (just starting to release a bean-to-bar line)
Fearless Chocolate Company (raw)
Ghirardelli (Owned by Lindt in Switzerland)
Guittard
Jacques Torres
Kraft (German-owned)
Mars
Mast Brothers
Merkens (ADM-owned, bean-to-couverture)
Nestle (Swiss-owned)
Original Hawaiian Chocolate Factory (also grows their beans on American soil)
Patric Chocolate
Peters (Cargill-owned, bean-to-couverture)
Rogue Chocolatier
Sacred Chocolate (raw)
Scharffen Berger
Soma Chocolatemaker (actually in Canada)
Taza
Tcho
Theo
Van Leer (Belgian-owned)
Wilbur (Cargill-owned, bean-to-bar)
World's Finest Chocolate

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Permalink Reply by Mark Boxshus on August 11, 2008 at 5:55pm

Now..........this list is more like it. Thanks for providing the update.

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Permalink Reply by cybele on January 26, 2009 at 1:13pm

Hershey's does not roast their own beans any longer, they buy liquor from Callebaut. (Though I believe they're still sourcing their own beans, just outsourcing the process.) Yes, they own Scharffen Berger, but it is its own discrete factory at this time from the rest of the Hershey's production line.

I wasn't aware that TCHO wasn't roasting their own beans. They show a lot of pictures of them playing with beans on their website.

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Permalink Reply by cm on January 26, 2009 at 5:19pm

TCHO most definitely is bean to bar. They go straight to the farmers to get their beans, and roast their own.

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Permalink Reply by Louis Rossetto on January 26, 2009 at 9:19pm

Jay's post about TCHO is wrong. We at TCHO buy our beans directly from farmers or coops, we personally oversee their roasting to our own proprietary roast protocols and profiles, and then we manufacture beans from the liquor made from the roasts.

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Permalink Reply by Alan McClure on January 27, 2009 at 6:14am

Hi Louis,

Good to meet you, if only online!

Do you roast those beans in your San Francisco facility, or are they roasted elsewhere, for example at origin?

Happy New Year,

Alan

Permalink Reply by Clay Gordon on January 27, 2009 at 9:49am

What most people would consider a "true" bean-to-bar chocolate manufacturer would physically do their own roasting and grind liquor from those beans on their own machines - not have someone else do those steps to their specs/protocols.

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