Swiss chocolate is chocolate produced in Switzerland. While cacao beans and other ingredients such as sugar can originate from outside Switzerland, the actual production of the chocolate must take place in Switzerland. Switzerland's chocolates have earned an international reputation for high quality with many famous international chocolate brands. Switzerland is particularly renowned for its milk chocolate. In 1875, a Swiss confectioner, Daniel Peter, developed the first solid milk chocolate using condensed milk, which had been invented by Henri Nestlé, who was Peter's neighbour in Vevey.
History
The 17th century saw the start of chocolate processed in Switzerland. In the 18th century chocolate was only produced in a few areas, such as the Ticino. In the 19th and early-20th centuries, the following chocolate factories were founded:
In the second half of the 19th century, Swiss chocolate started to spread abroad. Closely linked to this was the invention of milk chocolate by Daniel Peter in Vevey and the invention of conching by Rodolphe Lindt.
Sales market
From the 19th century until the First World War and throughout the Second World War the Swiss chocolate industry was very export-oriented. After the Second World War Switzerland began to outsource production due to commercial restrictions. Today most Swiss chocolate is consumed by the Swiss themselves, and Switzerland has the highestper capita rate of chocolate consumption worldwide. In 2004, 148,270 tonnes of chocolate were produced in Switzerland. 53% of this was exported. The gross income of the Swiss chocolate industry in 2004 was 1.37 billion CHF.
Industry structure
In 1901, Swiss chocolate producers created the Union libre des fabricants suisses de chocolat . In 1916, this was divided into the Chambre syndicale des fabricants suisses de chocolat and the Convention chocolatière suisse. The former "Chambre syndicale" protects the interests of Swiss chocolate producers. The "Convention chocolatière" focused on the quality of the chocolate and sought a uniform price strategy. In 1994 the Convention was disbanded.
