Nutella: The Full Story

           Cocoa trees are mainly found in West Africa. They can also be found in parts of Southeast Asia, and parts of South American countries. The beans are cut by hand in Africa with large knives which are put on long poles. Cocoa pods (a pod is what the beans grow on) can grow at any time of the year, and usually grow many times a year. In West Africa, people carry the pods on their backs, and then break the pods by hand and the pods go to the second part of the creation of Nutella. Drying and Fermentation. The pulp around the cocoa bean melts away into a liquid thanks to heat. The liquid pulp is later drained away. In Africa, the pulps usually melt away by leaving the cocoa beans in the sun, covered in leaves for 5-6 days. In the drying stage, the beans that are left after the fermentation are dried in the sun or by using special drying tools. Once the beans arrive at a factory, they are sorted and cleaned properly. In factories, the dried beans are cracked, then a stream of air separates the nib (the part of the bean that is used to make chocolate) from the shell. Once the nibs are separated, they are roasted. The roasting time depends on what the nib will be used for.