Chocolatier

Chocolatiers make confectionery products with chocolate. They perform activities such as examination, feeling, and tasting of ground chocolate paste. Such analysis leads them to ascertain if colour, texture, and taste of the chocolate paste meets specifications.

The following job titles also refer to chocolatier:

chocolate producer
chocolate goods maker
chocolate maker

A high school diploma is generally required to work as a chocolatier.

ISCO skill level is defined as a function of the complexity and range of tasks and duties to be performed in an occupation. It is measured on a scale from 1 to 4, with 1 the lowest level and 4 the highest, by considering:

• the nature of the work performed in an occupation in relation to the characteristic tasks and duties
• the level of formal education required for competent performance of the tasks and duties involved and
• the amount of informal on-the-job training and/or previous experience in a related occupation required for competent performance of these tasks and duties.

Chocolatier is a Skill level 2 occupation.

These occupations, although different, require a lot of knowledge and skills similar to chocolatier.

cacao beans cleaner
liquor grinding mill operator
extract mixer tester
confectioner
master coffee roaster

These occupations require some skills and knowledge of chocolatier. They also require other skills and knowledge, but at a higher ISCO skill level, meaning these occupations are accessible from a position of chocolatier with a significant experience and/or extensive training.

green coffee coordinator
green coffee buyer
animal feed supervisor
dairy processing technician
malt house supervisor

This knowledge should be acquired through learning to fulfill the role of chocolatier.

• Chemical aspects of chocolates: Chemical constitution of chocolate to alter recipes and provide customers with experiences of pleasure.
• History of chocolate: Origins of chocolate. Evolution of chocolate up to today. Preservation and fomentation of the tradition of chocolate.
• Food safety principles: Scientific background of food safety which includes preparation, handling, and storage of food to minimise the risk of foodborne illness and other health hazards.
• Financial capability: Financial operations such as calculations, cost estimations, budget management taking relevant commercial and statistical data into account such as data for materials, supplies and manpower.
• Process from cacao to chocolate: Process to transform cacao to chocolate where the seeds of the cacao tree are fermented to develop the flavour. Process from beginning to the end including the drying of the beans, cleaning and roasting, the grinding of the nibs to obtain cocoa mass and processing accordingly.
• Types of chocolate: Types of chocolate such as milk chocolate, white chocolate, dark chocolate, unsweetened chocolate and raw chocolate.
• Cacao beans varieties: Variety of cocoa beans like criollo, forastero, trinitario and their properties and characteristics to foresee the type of chocolate the cocoa can yield.
• Food and beverage industry: The respective industry and the processes involved in the food and beverage industry, such as raw material selection, processing, packaging, and storage.

These skills are necessary for the role of chocolatier.

• Care for food aesthetic: Convey presentation and aesthetic elements into the production of food. Cut products properly, manage right quantities into the product, care for the attractiveness of the product.
• Temper chocolate: Heat and cool chocolate using marble slabs or machines in order to obtain the desired characteristics for different applications like shininess of the chocolate or the way it breaks.
• Implement marketing strategies: Implement strategies which aim to promote a specific product or service, using the developed marketing strategies.
• Operate a heat treatment process: Apply heat treatment aimed at preparing and preserving half-finished or finished food products.
• Perform sensory evaluation: Evaluate the quality of a given type of food or beverage based on its appearance, smell, taste, aroma, and others. Suggest possible improvements and comparisons with other products.
• Sculpt chocolate: Use moulds and pieces of chocolate to create three-dimensional artwork and decorate the piece with designs in chocolate.
• Manufacture confectionery: Manage the development and production of bakers’ confectionery, also called flour confections, including pastries, cakes, and similar baked goods.
• Ensure public safety and security: Implement the relevant procedures, strategies and use the proper equipment to promote local or national security activities for the protection of data, people, institutions, and property.
• Clean food and beverage machinery: Clean machinery used for food or beverage production processes. Prepare the appropriate solutions for cleaning. Prepare all parts and assure that they are clean enough to avoid deviation or errors in the production process.
• Produce confectionery from chocolate: Produce different kinds of confectionery from chocolate mass.
• Apply HACCP: Apply regulations regarding manufacture of food and food safety compliance. Employ food safety procedures based on Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP).
• Make artistic food creations: Use ingredients, mixes and instruments to create artistic food preparations e.g. cakes. Be imaginative and resourceful, and combine colours and shapes to have a good effect. Turn designs into reality, caring for aesthetic and presentation.
• Implement sales strategies: Carry out the plan to gain competitive advantage on the market by positioning the company’s brand or product and by targeting the right audience to sell this brand or product to.
• Mould chocolate: Mould chocolate to make chocolate pieces that are of a certain shape. Pour liquid chocolate into a mould and let it harden.
• Apply requirements concerning manufacturing of food and beverages: Apply and follow national, international, and internal requirements quoted in standards, regulations and other specifications related with manufacturing of food and beverages.
• Apply GMP: Apply regulations regarding manufacture of food and food safety compliance. Employ food safety procedures based on Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP).
• Create new recipes: Combine innovative and creative ideas to come up with new recipes and preparations to extend the product of range of a company. Make modifications to recipes in order to enhance taste, reach productivity goals, develop and improve products.
• Select adequate packaging for food products: Choose the appropriate packages for food products taking into account attractiveness and suitability of the package. Use proper packaging for sending it safely and at a reasonable cost. Have awareness that packaging can also influence the product characteristics such as shape, weight or solidity. Balance out various aspects such as cost, attractivity and compliance with regulations and environment protection.
• Create new concepts: Come up with new concepts.
• Exert quality control to processing food: Ensure the quality of all factors involved in a food production process.

This knowledge is sometimes, but not always, required for the role of chocolatier. However, mastering this knowledge allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

• Origin of dietary fats and oils: The distinction between dietary fats that come fromanimals and oils derived from vegetables.
• Manufacturing process of ice cream: Managing the manufacturing process of ice cream from the blending stage to cooling and blend flavours, freezing, and packaging.

These skills and competences are sometimes, but not always, required for the role of chocolatier. However, mastering these skills and competences allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

• Impart training on general quality management supervision: Provide training to production employees, in groups or individually, on standard operating procedures, product specifications, visual quality inspection criteria, production controls, formulas and food safety procedures.
• Maintain working relationships: Ensure effective working relationships with colleagues and others. Maintain them over long periods of time.
• Work independently in service of a food production process: Work individually as an important element in service of a food production process. This function is executed individually with little or no supervision or collaboration with colleagues.
• Perform chemical experiments: Perform chemical experiments with the aim of testing various products and substances in order to draw conclusions in terms of product viability and replicability.
• Analyse trends in the food and beverage industries: Investigate trends in foodstuffs related to consumers preferences. Examine key markets based on both product type and geography as well as technological improvements in the industry.
• Show confidence: Demonstrate degrees of maturity by fully understanding one’s own qualities and abilities which can serve as sources of confidence in different situations.
• Assess cocoa bean quality: Examining the type ofcocoa bean delivered by suppliers and matching it to the desired product.
• Liaise with colleagues: Liaise with fellow colleagues to ensure common understanding on work related affairs and agree on the necessary compromises the parties might need to face. Negotiate compromises between parties as to ensure that work in general run efficiently towards the achievement of the objectives.
• Identify market niches: Analyse the composition of the markets, segment these into groups, and highlight the opportunities that each one of these niches represent in terms of new products.
• Control of expenses: Monitoring and maintaining effective cost controls, in regards to efficiencies, waste, overtime and staffing. Assessing excesses and strives for efficiency and productivity.
• Perform services in a flexible manner: Adapt service approach when circumstances change.
• Identify the factors causing changes in food during storage: recognize the most relevant factors (chemical, physical, environmental etc) that can alter the food during its storage
• Analyse characteristics of food products at reception: Analyse characteristics, composition, and other properties of food products at reception.
• Liaise with managers: Liaise with managers of other departments ensuring effective service and communication, i.e. sales, planning, purchasing, trading, distribution and technical.

7512 – Bakers, pastry-cooks and confectionery makers

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References

1. Chocolatier – ESCO
2. Featured image: By Oriel – Own work, Public Domain