Bitzel’s Chocolate appoints chocolatier and underlines its sustainability mission
Fast-rising US independent confectionery business, Bitzel’s Chocolate, has taken on George Foley as executive chef and chocolatier, further strengthening its young team dedicated to producing premium product ranges, reports Neill Barston.
Based in Suwanee, Georgia, the fledgeling company has created a 7,000-square-foot factory, which has reported a strong response to its high-quality offerings since opening its doors to consumers at the start of the year.
Its latest chef recruit (pictured main image) was recently a Viennoiserie baker at Bacchanalia and Star Provisions, and according to the business, he will focus on menu development, culinary training and building relationships with local farmers and national companies.
“I’m thrilled to be a part of such an amazing concept and to get to work with a chocolatier like Ray Bitzel,” Foley says of his arrival at the company that is seeking to set a strong benchmark for its eco-friendly operating standards.
Notably, the business was created by entrepreneur Ray Bitzel and his business partner and co-founder Dave Rose, creates affordable, chef-crafted chocolate confections and offers visitors an unforgettable, Willy Wonka-style experience as they watch as various treats move through the production process.
“Of course, the chocolate is the star of the show, but what I love is that we’re giving visitors an entire experience here,” Foley says. “We’re taking them on a journey from learning how chocolate is made to seeing the machines and the production process to tasting the different types of chocolate that they may have never experienced before, such as gold chocolate and ruby chocolate.”
Foley comes to Bitzel’s from Bacchanalia where he concentrated on croissants and pastries. He also has worked as a corporate chocolatier at Bodega Chocolates in Fountain Valley, California, as executive pastry chef for the Dolce Group in Los Angeles, as pastry chef at Salty’s on Alki Beach in Seattle, and as the overnight baker viennoisarie at 3 Michelin Star The Inn at Little Washington.
Sustainability focus
As the company explained to Confectionery Production, since its recent formation, sustainability has been at the centre of the company’s ethos, using advanced processing equipment alongside ensuring environmentally responsible sourcing of ingredients for the company.
“Everyone’s more aware of what they’re eating these days,” says owner of the business and chocolatier, Ray Bitzel. “They want to know where their food comes from and what’s in it, and that their enjoyment doesn’t come at the expense of the planet.”
“We’ve made a huge point of sustainability for several reasons, not the least of which is that we just think it’s a good thing to do,” Bitzel says. “Another is that it’s just smart business. The chocolate industry is going through a lot of turmoil right now, and one reason for that is that the price of chocolate is at a 45-year high. We’re working with farmers on ways we can help them be more sustainable and more efficient.”
Moreover, as the business revealed, sustainability starts at Bitzel’s farms, specifically Costa Esmeraldas, where Freddy Salazar and his family have converted over 100 hectares of clear-cut forest to a thriving cacao and agroforest. It is far more profitable for the local economy with two yearly harvests that in turn significantly reduce the need for additional logging and clear-cutting of old growth forest. In partnership with its farms, Bitzel’s supports these types of activities by paying more than three times the average price, which also allows the company to receive the best beans. This is great for the environment and the community, which makes it sustainable.
Another way Bitzel’s has committed to a more sustainable model is by modifying its equipment. “When our gelato machines came to the U.S., they required water-cooling, which would take 10 gallons an hour for each machine,” Bitzel says. “Multiply that by two machines, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and that’s about 175,000 gallons we’d be wasting per year just to cool the machines. We worked with the manufacturer to modify the machines and saved thousands of gallons of water. It’s a closed-loop system, which is more expensive up-front, but we don’t have all that water going down the drain.”
