Cocoa And Chocolate
The Tree, The Bean The Beverage

 i ■j-': CHAPTER X MANUFACTURE OF COCOA AND CHOCOLATE (CONTJ OPERATIONS PECULIAR TO COCOA AND CACAO BUTTER 1. Pressing out the Cacao Butter. In the preceding chapter, the processes for the production of ground cacao nib or unsweetened chocolate were briefly described. The next process in the production of cocoa is the removal of part of the cacao butter. The machines used are similar in principle to those generally used for pressing the oil out of seeds and nuts, but, whereas most of these are pressed in a whole or mealy condition, in this instance the material to be pressed is a liquid, carrying only very fine particles in suspension. The modern cacao press consists of a number of circular pots arranged vertically one above the other. A filter cloth having been placed on the perforated plate which forms the bottom of the pot, about 20 Ibs. of liquefied cacao bean is run into the pot and the top covered with a filter cloth and perforated plate. Hydraulic pressure up to 6,000 Ibs. to the square inch is applied to the pile of füll pots. The butter which escapes through the perforations is carefully collected. It is coloured brown by a trace of ground cacao bean. After pressing, the material left in the pot is no longer a liquid but a hard brown disc, weighing about 12 Ibs., and looking for all the worid like a gigantic pine lozenge. The cake may contain anything between 20 and 30 per cent of cacao butter, and has only to be ground up and sieved to become cocoa. 2. Obtaining the Powder. The press-eakes are