At Biofach 2023 trade fair, which recently took place in Nuremberg/Germany, exhibitor Herza Schokolade focused on three topics: organic vegan, natural sweetness and food pairing. With its three trending organic product lines, this specialist in small chocolate pieces provides creative variety for muesli, snacks, ice cream and baked goods.

The demand for organic vegan alternatives to milk and white chocolate pieces continues to grow. The big challenge is to get the familiar creamy and milky flavour, and that is exactly what Herza intends with its new products. These organic vegan alternatives to milk chocolate are based on sunflower protein and come in flavour combinations with amaranth or salty caramel, and as Double Chips with a brown coating around a white core. The supplier uses oat flour as the basis for its organic vegan white chocolate alternatives. In the varieties white chocolate with coffee nibs, vanilla caramel and lemon grass matcha, they enable new product ideas for the booming plant-based market.

Natural indulgence is more in demand than ever, as more and more consumers choose products that do not contain white sugar, be they fitness foods like muesli or treats like ice cream, snacks or baked goods. Consumers want alternative sweeteners, ideally from natural sources. One example is coconut flower sugar, whose malty, caramel-like notes harmonize perfectly with chocolate. The company shows this with its new “Inspired by nature” organic product line. This features chocolate pieces with highly varied fruit and crispy components. For example, banana flakes give creamy milk chocolate leaves a special crunch, while sour cherry powder lends dark chocolate leaves a unique, delicately tangy fruit note. A total of eight different combinations are on offer.

Another example is the new organic date chocolate which contains just three ingredients and thus meets customer requirements for clean label products. This dark chocolate is 50 % cocoa and is made of cocoa mass, powdered dates and cocoa butter. The natural date powder, consisting of 100 % dried and finely ground dates, gives it a light fruity sweetness. A nutritious sugar substitute, dates are also rich in fibre. This organic date chocolate, which can be used in many different ways, is suitable for muesli and snack mixes, as well as healthy baked goods and pastries.

Food pairing is an ongoing trend in haute cuisine. This combines foods that at first glance would not seem to go together, for example dark chocolate and kale, white chocolate and caviar, or chocolate muffins with bleu cheese. These combinations are not random: They are based on shared flavours of the paired products, as determined by scientific research, and they offer a starting point for unusual creations. Herza has developed three different compositions for muesli, ice cream and snack mixes: thick leaves of milk chocolate with a coffee caramel note, chopped bits of white chocolate with strawberry and lemon grass, and dark chocolate leaves with cardamom and rum – and all are organic.