CPC campaigns for consumption of chocolate

Speaking at the event, the Managing Director of the Cocoa Processing Company (CPC), Mr Charles Debrah Asante, urged Ghanaians to incorporate cocoa products in foods because of their health values.

He said it was the goal of the CPC to promote greater consumption of cocoa products, noting that 70 per cent of the cocoa was from Africa, while 60 per cent of the total production was shared between Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire.

Mr Asante was, however, not happy that consumption of the product was about one per cent, which according to him, was woefully inadequate for a nation which produced cocoa on a large -scale .

He appealed to the public to show the way to maintain the cocoa industry because ‘the price of cocoa has fallen and we must maintain our standards.’’

Mr Asante said the promotion of cocoa consumption would be extended to other parts of the country to create awareness about the product.

He called for patronage of chocolate during the next Valentine’s Day which is celebrated as lovers’ day.

A Pharmacist at the CPC, Ms Theresa Nyarko, who took participants through the nutritional values of chocolate, contended that the product  had enormous health benefits.

She said the chocolate produced by CPC had anti-depressant, anti-cancer properties; was good for body building, the respiratory system and useful for asthmatic patients.

The Research and Development Manager at CPC, Mr Frank Asante, urged caterers and people in the hospitality industry to formulate recipes with cocoa products and indicated that these would be produced by the CPC under the trade name of the inventor.

The Public Affairs Manager of COCOBOD, Mr Noah Kwasi Amenya, said that with the fall in the price of cocoa on the world market, there was the need for the people to intensify the use of the product because of its health and economic values.

A representative of the Ghana Tourist Authority, Mr Anane Nsiah, commended the CPC for the bold step  it had taken to encourage cocoa consumption and urged Ghanaians to embrace the initiative.

Story by Rose Hayford Darko