Rough pieces of dark chocolate on a walnut board beside a halved cacao pod full of pale beans and a pile of cocoa nibs
AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.
doodlechocolate

FROM POD TO BAR

Read the bar.
Know the bean.

35% the legal floor

  • Read the name
  • Store it cool
  • Keep it dry
  • Bloom is harmless

What the label promises, and what the white dust means.

In the UK, "chocolate", "milk chocolate" and "white chocolate" are legal names with minimum recipes. Here is what each one has to contain, why a bar can turn pale, and how the cacao tree makes it all possible.

Plain English, with the sources linked.

Updated

Check a label

THE SHORT ANSWER

The name is a recipe.

UK law sets minimum cocoa, milk and fat
for every type of chocolate.

ON THE LABEL

Chocolate means 35%

Plain chocolate must hold at least 35% dry cocoa solids; milk chocolate at least 25%.

Compare the types

ON THE SURFACE

Pale is not spoiled

A white, dusty film is usually fat or sugar bloom. It changes texture, not safety.

Two kinds of bloom

ON THE TREE

Pods grow on the trunk

Cacao flowers and fruits straight from the trunk and branches, each pod holding 30 to 40 seeds.

Cacao facts

A QUICK LABEL CHECK

What does the name
have to contain?

Pick the name on the wrapper. The minimums come from Schedule 1 of the UK Cocoa and Chocolate Products Regulations 2003.

Label check

Choose the name on the wrapper
ChocolateAt least 35% cocoa solids

Plain or dark chocolate must contain at least 35% total dry cocoa solids, including at least 18% cocoa butter and 14% dry non-fat cocoa solids.

Milk chocolateAt least 25% cocoa solids

Milk chocolate needs at least 25% dry cocoa solids, at least 14% dry milk solids and at least 3.5% milk fat.

Family milkAt least 20% cocoa solids

The separate "family milk chocolate" standard allows less cocoa, at least 20% dry cocoa solids, but asks for more milk: at least 20% milk solids and 5% milk fat.

White chocolateAt least 20% cocoa butter

White chocolate is made from cocoa butter, milk and sugars. It needs at least 20% cocoa butter and 14% dry milk solids, with no minimum for the brown, non-fat part of the cocoa.

Source: The Cocoa and Chocolate Products Regulations 2003, Schedule 1.

These are legal floors, not quality scores. Many bars contain far more cocoa than the minimum for their name.

WHY CHOCOLATE TURNS WHITE

Two kinds
of bloom.

Same pale look, different causes.
Both are harmless.

Greasy sheen

Cocoa butter on the move

Cocoa butter melts at about human body temperature. Heat, light or rough handling can push it to the surface, where it sets as a white sheen or blotchy spots.

FAT BLOOM · WARMTH

Dry, gritty dust

Sugar drawn out by moisture

Moist storage pulls sugar to the surface, leaving a rough, grainy film. Taking cold chocolate out into moist air can trigger it.

SUGAR BLOOM · DAMP

Bloomed chocolate has lost its neat crystal structure, which is why it can taste chalky. Melting and re-tempering it realigns the crystals and brings the shine back.

KEEP IT AT ITS BEST

Four habits
for a better bar.

Two slabs of dark chocolate on marble: one glossy and smooth, the other dulled by a pale grey-white bloom
AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.

  1. Read the name, not just the picture

    "Chocolate", "milk chocolate" and "white chocolate" each promise a legal minimum. Check which one the wrapper actually uses.

  2. Keep it cool and out of the sun

    Warmth and light drive cocoa butter to the surface as fat bloom. A cool, dark cupboard beats a sunny worktop.

  3. Keep it dry

    Damp storage causes sugar bloom. If chocolate has been in the fridge, leave it wrapped while it warms up so moist air does not settle on it.

  4. Store it like medicine around pets

    The PDSA advises keeping chocolate safely out of paws' reach. Dark chocolate carries the most theobromine.

CACAO FACTS

Five things about
the tree and bean.

Green and orange cacao pods and small pink-white flowers growing directly from the bark of a cacao tree trunk
AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.

  1. Food of the gods

    The Latin name Theobroma means "food of the gods". The Olmecs were growing the cacao tree as long ago as 400 BCE.

  2. Flowers on the trunk

    Cacao flowers grow directly on the trunk and branches rather than on new shoots. In the wild, tiny midges pollinate them.

  3. Thirty to forty seeds a pod

    Each ribbed fruit holds 30 to 40 seeds, the cocoa beans, and an individual flower opens for a single day.

  4. From bean to liquor

    To make chocolate, the beans are fermented, dried, roasted, husked and then ground into chocolate liquor.

  5. Two countries, two thirds

    Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana grow about two thirds of the world's cocoa, and roughly 95% of cocoa comes from small farms.

QUICK QUESTIONS

Chocolate, answered.

Short answers to the questions people ask most.

What makes chocolate "chocolate" in the UK?

Under the Cocoa and Chocolate Products Regulations 2003, chocolate must contain at least 35% total dry cocoa solids, including at least 18% cocoa butter and at least 14% dry non-fat cocoa solids.

Is white chocolate really chocolate?

Legally, yes. UK rules define white chocolate as a product made from cocoa butter, milk or milk products and sugars, with at least 20% cocoa butter and 14% dry milk solids. There is no minimum for non-fat cocoa solids.

My chocolate has a white coating. Is it safe to eat?

Usually that is bloom. Fat bloom happens when cocoa butter moves to the surface, often after warmth; sugar bloom follows damp storage. A chemist quoted by Live Science calls bloom harmless, though the texture can turn chalky or gritty.

Why is chocolate dangerous for dogs?

Chocolate contains theobromine, which the PDSA warns can cause severe heart problems in dogs. Dark chocolate has higher levels than milk chocolate. If a dog eats chocolate, contact a vet straight away.

Where does most cocoa come from?

According to the German Cocoa Forum, two countries provide about two thirds of world cocoa: Côte d'Ivoire (about 2 million tonnes in 2016/17) and Ghana (0.97 million tonnes). It estimates about 95% of cocoa is grown on small farms.

Sources

Where the facts come from

  1. The Cocoa and Chocolate Products Regulations 2003, Schedule 1legislation.gov.uk
  2. Cacao tree: food of the gods, flowers on the trunkRoyal Botanic Gardens, Kew
  3. Theobroma cacao: seeds per pod and floweringUniversity of Arizona Campus Arboretum
  4. Why does chocolate turn white (and is it safe to eat)?Live Science, 2022
  5. Chocolate, theobromine and dogsPDSA, 2016
  6. Cocoa-producing countriesGerman Initiative on Sustainable Cocoa

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