Tuesday, July 13, 2004

Dark chocolate
This is a public service post for people eating dark chocolate in Norway.
Are you one of the many who have discovered that really dark chocolate is a great way to have your chocolate and eat it too / as in not gaining weight? I have used that trick for sating the chocolate craving for years, and it works! The chocolate has to be at least 70% cocoa, and no, you can't eat without control, but who can really eat that much really dark chocolate anyway?

I was oh-so-happy when Freia of Norway started to make a really dark chocolate. It was easier to find, and cheaper than the stuff I got in health/speciality stores. But hey, what was this? I gained weight from it! I would eat a few pieces of Valrhona, for instance, and not gain weight, and then a few pieces of Freia Premium the next week, and gain weight. This was odd. This required serious study.

I did that study by turning the chocolate bar over, and reading the fine print at the back of the box. On the front there is this large mark saying 70%. At the back you will see that it is 70% cocoa in the outer layers. The inner layer is 35% truffle something. If you break off a piece of Freia Dark Premium, you will see that the sides and the middle layers split apart.

So now I know. And I am back to the exspensive stuff. But somebody really should let Freia know they have been found out. I am just wondering: should I call one of the health/lifestyle journalists first, or Freia?

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Well spotted Torill.

I just bought a bar of Freia Dark Premium and I witnessed myself the “layer separation” :)

I guess that given the political power of Kraft Foods (a.k.a. Freia) some authorities are inclined to turn a blind eye. We should not forget that Kraft is responsible for the production and distribution of Oreo cookies – products containing trans fats and potentially cancerous (New York Times - A Suit Seeks to Bar Oreos as a Health Risk). Why would they change their worldwide strategy in Norway?

Ultimately it is up to us, the consumers, to read the labels and buy what it is best for us.

Here are some other brands offering the good stuff in Norway – Michel Cluizel and Sjokolade Venchi.