Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate has opened House of Chocolate in Mouscron, Belgium, home to inspiration, co-creation & innovation with customers.

As customers’ need for inspiration, innovation and speed-to-market take precedence in today’s dynamic chocolate market, Cargill’s House of Chocolate provides them with a collaborative, end-to-end customer experience. This 6,200 square meter complex, which is built alongside the company’s existing chocolate production plant, includes a state-of-the-art chocolate experience center, a unique pilot plant with sensory expertise, and creative workspace for the company’s European R&D team of chocolate engineers.
Inge Demeyere, Managing Director for Cargill Chocolate Europe, said, “We wanted to create a place where customers can explore the entire world of chocolate under one roof, enabling them to taste, feel, smell and see chocolate in every form. At the House of Chocolate, customers can collaborate with our experts and leverage our resources to create products inspired by the latest trends. It is a place designed to bring ideas to life and quickly move them to the market.”

That idea-to-execution concept begins in the facility’s chocolate experience center, where inspiration and innovation go hand in hand. Here, customers can explore market trends around health, sustainability, and sensory experiences, and brainstorm new product concepts. Collaboration is central to the House of Chocolate experience, as it serves as the European R&D hub for Cargill’s chocolate, coating and filling activities and its 40 chocolate engineers. It’s also home to a unique pilot plant, giving brands the opportunity to rapidly prototype new products in small batches for greater efficiency and speed to market.