Dr Daniel Kadow, programme director and moderator of the 9th Cocoa Round Table, welcomed around 160 participants online in Hamburg/Germany. Wolf Kropp-Büttner, Chairman of the Foundation of the German Cocoa and Chocolate Industry and a sup- porter in this function, was very pleased about the internationally staffed auditorium.

By Dr. Jörg Häseler

The question of short-chain peptides in cocoa was addressed by Prof. Dr Nikolai Kuhnert, Jacobs University, Bremen/Germany, who looked at the products of fermentation and the precursors of aroma-active compounds. Using the example of the storage proteins vicillin and albumin, the speaker showed that these are very good quality markers. In addition, he referred to a project he is working on together with the cocoa and chocolate specialist Barry Callebaut: as part of this, the entire processing route is being looked at with regard to flavour components. Regardless of the topic, he noted that the volume of data continues to increase and therefore the link with bioinformatics is necessary.

Dr Frank Heckel, Director of the Food Chemistry Institute (LCI) of the Association of the German Confectionery Industry (BDSI), also reported on the further development of cocoa fermentation from a random to a controlled process. Furthermore, he positioned himself with regard to the well-known contaminants: in the case of MOSH/MOAH, he presented the current figures and looked back to 2011 when the issue was first raised. He further recommended manufacturers to apply the toolbox developed for minimization. He mentioned the new limit value of 400 µg/kg cocoa powder, which was published by the EU on 25 May 2021. One should also take along his hint that more acrylamide is formed and absorbed via household preparation than via industrial products – nevertheless, the confectionery industry will continue to work on minimizing the contents.

Prof. Dr Stefan Weckx, Vrije Universiteit Brussel/Belgium, looked into the microbial world of cocoa production and the decoding of the fine aroma. The insights gained will enable the development of standardized training samples for sensory panels. Sequence-based omics technologies, combined with bioinformatic analysis, allow detailed insights into fermentation processes – especially if attention is to be paid to the composition of the microorganisms, as this potential in flavour development is almost inexhaustible. Furthermore, the complex process of fermentation can be unravelled with the help of the sequence of the respective microorganisms. The end result is a rational choice in starter cultures.

Dr Irene Chetschik and Karin Chatelain from Zurich University of Applied Sciences brought the topic of flavour closer to the audience in the form of a tasting of four previously sent chocolates. In their presentation, they explained that the vast amount of substances can be understood as a large orchestra. Accordingly, the training of the staff of sensory panels is important. This includes learning and using the technical vocabulary, otherwise it would not be possible to evaluate the descriptions. Using the four chocolates, the participants were then able to get an idea of how difficult it can be to learn this language.

The 10th Round Table Cocoa will take place on 2-3 June 2022 – then again as a face-to-face event in Hamburg.