VETERANS TODAY PARIS DOES THE CHOCOLATE SHOW
By Jane Rosenstein, VT Paris Bureau
Photo credits: Lidiya Sevastanova and Catherine Szymanski
Chocolate lovers had the opportunity to visit the Salon du Chocolat now in its 16th year in Paris from October 28- Novermber 1, 2010 at the Porte de Versaille convention center. The theme this year was “Ethic and Choc” which means fair trade and chocolate. It promoted good chocolate, made with natural ingredients. It was an event of “biotiful” people.
The attendance for this years show was estimated at 120, 000 visitors with more than 400 exhibitors. Consumers are becoming more interested in “bio” green which means ecology natural ingredients and preserving natural resources. The chocolate show provides a relationship between the southern countries which produce the chocolate and the consumers. All kinds of chocolate bars, candy in boxes, cakes, beverages from many countries were featured.
This show was fantastic because we saw fashion shows, new tea machines, entertainment from different countries and ate as many free samples as we could.
Bon et Bio se met au Vert
translation:
Good and biological going with green.
The first night the Press including the 4 of us in Paris who contribute to VT were invited to a special “soiree”, There we ate expensive chocolate from France, Belgium, Switzerland and other countries from Europe, Japan, Peru and Ecuador. After eating all the expensive chocolate, we found that Ecuador Exports organization Corpei had an interesting display of chocolate and people to discuss why Ecuador is one of the world’s leading producers of cocoa.
They were interested not only in retail sales like the others but wanted to export their chocolate. The chocolate we tasted was delicious and less expensive than the major French and European brands.
The American companies like Hershey and Nestle were not there. French people are very snobbish in thinking that they are the ambassadors of chocolate to the world. Grand Marinier offered free crepes with their liquor during this special night free but charged money during the rest of the show.w which has
The fashion shows were great because they were produced by l’Ethical Fashion Show which has 130 creators from countries throughout the world. The association which participated in this show was Universal Love which is 15 years old and is an association of young stylists.
The theme was chocolate of course and the dresses and costumes were mostly brown like chocolate and made of natural fibers from We enjoyed watching the models most of whom wore outlandish costumes. We watched the young children, who were there being on school vacation, sitting on the floor close to the stage and holding out their hands to receive chocolate that the models gave them.
To learn how to cook with chocolate, Valrhona , a famous French chocolate producer, offered a 1 1/2 hour cooking lesson with a famous chef to learn how to make gaufres (waffles) and chocolate mousse. For courses with 8-10 people, the cost was 35 Euros.
Special presentations such as dances and acrobatic performances acquainted visitors with the cultures of other countries. There were also presentations about chocolate including lectures and tastings in a room with 120 seats. All were great.
Nestle Special T was displayed for the fist time in a special room where visitors were offered the opportunity to taste the 25 teas which are sold in capsules to go into their new machine. This new machine is sold only on the internet for delivery in France and Switzerland. People could order it at the show and during the show at a special introductory price. The teas and tisanes ( like tea) tasted delicious.
Special exotic products with chocolate included eclaire au chanvre which is a eclair made from chanvre which grows in Bretagne in France, and tastes like marijuana. Our photographer, Charles Boisson tasted it and said it was great.
Chocolate lovers had a great feat of eating delicious chocolates and seeing great fashion shows. We learned about biological consciousness and saw good fashion shows, dances and other performances.
Chocolate Shows, which originated in France are now in U.SA. November 11- November 14, 2010, Tokyo, Japan January 26-31, 2011, Bologna, Italy February 25-27, 2010 and several other countries.
Jane Rosenstein is a U.S. citizen living in Paris, France. She is a professional translator/interpreter. She is the owner of The International Connection which does international marketing consultation including sales of wine, interpretation, and translation.
She enjoys the cultural life that living in Paris offers and has talents in organizing events. She speaks English, French, and Spanish. She has a B.S. degree in mathematics from the University of Pittsburgh and an M.B.A. degree from Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA.
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