This is the situation in 5 Science 3 class during English lesson.

The English teacher, Ms Sarah is discussing about the world of chocolate with her students, Izzatie and Dini. Sarah : Okay girls, the time is almost up. Now let me see your yesterdays homework. I give you 5 minutes to check your work before you hand in it. Hurry please! Izzatie : Teacher, look! Dini still got some big chocolate stain on her book. Just like before. Sarah : Now, dear. How many times I've told you? You can eat your chocolate but really, do you have to smudge the book with it? Dini : Oh, come on teacher. This is not really a chocolate because many chocolate confections only contain a very small percentage of actual chocolate. Sarah : Excuse me, honey! Are you questioning my sight? Dini : But teacher, according to Hershey there is no standard in the United States for Dark Chocolate, however, there are standards for Milk Chocolate and Semisweet chocolate. In some countries the standards are different. The UK is said to have slightly higher chocolate contents in most of their confections. In the USA, however, Milk Chocolate only has to contain about 10 percent chocolate liquor, whereas Semisweet chocolate has to contain at least 35 percent chocolate liquor. Milk chocolate, which has slightly different rules, must contain at least 20 percent Cocoa Butter. Izzatie : Dini, I know you enjoy chocolate every day. Unfortunately, I'm about to make you feel really guilty about it. Have you ever wondered where your chocolate comes from? Most of it comes from the labour of children, it is believed that in Africa alone, somewhere in the range of 5672 million children work on chocolate farms. These children are often tricked into working or sold into slavery outright and end up living out their lives working on these farms for the profit of others. The children who have it better live on bananas and corn paste. The unlucky ones are regularly flogged like animals. One child interviewed said that he was tricked into believing he would be earning money to help his family, but that the closest he gets to compensation are the days he is not beaten with a bicycle chain or the branch from a Cacao tree. The child has never even had occasion to try the food he spends his life slaving away to produce. Some would suggest that we buy Fair Trade, the problem is that Fair Trade does little if anything to help. Dini : Tsk! Izzatie, you are such a spoil sports. Whatever you say, chocolates still the most beloved products in the world. Izzatie : I know that! But Dini Sarah : Hush, you two. Thats right, Dini. Hot chocolate, chocolate sauce, chocolate chip cookies. Chocolate is one of Americans favourite flavours, which is especially true on Valentine's Day. But, who made all of these treats possible? The story of chocolate spans nearly 2,000 years but had its origins in the tropical rain forests of the Americas.

Izzatie : Wow, 2000 years! That is so long ago. And teacher, I heard long ago the Aztecs and Mayas used chocolate as currency, is it true? Dini : The Aztecs and Mayas? Who are they? Sarah : The Maya and Aztec people were the first to harvest cacao seeds. They blended the seeds with various seasonings to make a spicy drink that was enjoyed mostly by royalty and other people of stature. In fact, cacao seeds became so prized that they were used as a type of currency in the Aztec culture. Izzatie : Yes teacher, the history of chocolate pretty much begins with the Mayans. Cacao beans were so valuable to them that they were used as currency. It is said that ten beans could buy a rabbit, or even a prostitute. And one hundred beans were enough to buy a slave, though slavery in those days was a much different institution in many ways. When the Aztecs came along they adopted these traditions and continued using cacao beans as currency. People would buy everything from livestock, to food and tools with the beans and some people actually created counterfeit beans using clay. Generally only the richer people drank chocolate regularly though, because drinking your money is expensive. Especially dark chocolate, it costs you a lot. Sarah : That is why I prefer milk chocolate over the dark ones because even now it is way too expensive. Moreover, milk chocolate is cheaper and yummier too! Dini : I see. Teacher, if you love milk chocolate that much, I think you must be really grateful to live in this century because milk chocolate is a fairly recent invention. Dark chocolate has gained popularity in recent years; however, it is still not nearly as popular as the milk variety. We are often exposed to semisweet chocolate when baking delicious cookies, but milk chocolate is still by far the most popular. The interesting thing about it is that milk chocolate wasnt even invented until 1875. The first European invention in regards to chocolate involved removing about half of the Cocoa Butter, then crushing what remained and mixing it with salts to mitigate the bitter taste, this was known as Dutch Cocoa. Milk chocolate was discovered by taking this powder and mixing it with sweetened condensed milk, which had recently been invented by a man named Nestle. And the rest, as they say, is history. Sarah : The names Hershey, Cadbury and Nestl may be synonymous with chocolate for you. In many ways, these menMilton S. Hershey, William Cadbury and Henri Nestlwere the fathers of today's chocolate industry, each making their own important contributions to the evolution of chocolate production. Today, cacao is still grown, harvested, fermented, dried and by hand. Once this labour-intensive process is complete and the cacao has been sold, the process of turning cacao into solid chocolate is primarily done by machines in settings that are more scientific laboratory than factory. The cacao is then roasted, winnowed, ground, conched and tempered and precision instruments are used to monitor temperature, moisture and timing throughout the process to ensure that every bite or your chocolate has the perfect taste and texture. So, when you open your box of

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Dini Sarah

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Dini Izzatie Sarah Dini

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chocolates, remember its long journey from the rainforest to your mouth and enjoy every morsel! I bet the Aztecs really enjoy every morsel because the opulent Aztec rulers and higher class drank a ton of hot chocolate; Montezuma himself was reported to have drunk about fifty cups of chocolate a day. The Aztecs would pour the mixture back and forth from pitchers until it got really foamy and believed the foam was the best part. While a normal cup of chocolate wouldnt contain too much caffeine, the chocolate the Aztecs drank was extremely dark, combine that with the sheer intake and he must have been incredibly wired. What is truly fascinating though is that they did not drink hot chocolate, they drank it cold. They did not drink it with sugar, and it was actually the Spaniards who first added sugar to the drink. The Spaniards? What they got to do with chocolates? Spanish conquistadors recognized its value and began to import them to Spain where new recipes were invented. The Spaniards, who unlike the Maya and Aztec civilizations, had access to sugar and other spices, like cinnamon. They added these to the chocolate drink and what we know today as hot chocolate was born. Like the Maya and Aztec civilizations, this sumptuous drink was reserved mainly for royalty. Considered a delicacy, special porcelain chocolate cups, with two handles, a lid and a saucer, were created so that the nobility could enjoy the drink without staining their clothes. The Spaniards even managed to keep their treasured chocolate drink a secret from the rest of Europe for nearly 100 years before the craze took the rest of Europe by storm. Teacher, did you know chocolate also contains antioxidants? Anti what? Antioxidants, Izzatie. Dini, care to explain what antioxidant is? Well... Chocolate is high in antioxidants and is actually really good for you. Recent research has shown that chocolate contains flavonoids. The particular flavonoids contained in chocolate are called flavonols and procyanidins, which are good for your heart and assist in preventing the onset of cancer. However, it is important to note that the higher the chocolate content the better it is for you, some studies have shown that only dark chocolate really give you a significant boost in antioxidants in moderate doses. Researchers found that dark chocolate was great for reducing blood pressure, but that washing it down with milk, even if you didnt eat milk chocolate, would mess with the beneficial effects. Boy, all this sugary food talk really makes me feel hungry. Touch, I wish we all could go home and eat already. Dont worry, girls. Just wait for the bell to ring and you both could stuff your face up.