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American government: Builds concentration camps
Mexican government: Develops brand new chocolate bars
I'm happy to see there are still some governments out there who rule in the interest of the people.
Not objecting, but what is the motivation of the Mexican government to do this? Have they done similar things before?
I don't think they've done something exactly like this, but they have aggressively tackled obesity in recent years, going as far as labeling all foods with excess fats, salt, and sugar. It's very visible on the package and it does influence what I buy.
But this is the way I found out we're doing this now. 😅
But also I think because all the existing cocoa producers are evil enslavers. This will help something like 1800 Mexican farmers.
they have aggressively tackled obesity in recent years
Actually doing something? Good on them!
Government should probably provide the cheapest food and set the standard.
However ideology like this leads to issues in reality.
If a competitor gets lower prices would hint at some questionability. Government correction becomes suppression. Suppression leads to . . .?
Uhh what?
It’s called competition. Having a competitor in the market who’s goal is to keep people fed instead of making money hand over fist would both bring prices down and bring quality up on higher priced items.
If we have to do capitalism, let’s get some not-for-profit competition happening.
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Less profits for shareholders? And that is unacceptable!
/s
However ideology like this leads to issues in reality.
Issues for who? The consumer? Or the capitalists?
If a competitor gets lower prices would hint at some questionability.
It would hint that it's a shitty product, presuming no foul play by the government and the product is not overpriced (doesn't appear to be).
Government correction becomes suppression. Suppression leads to . . .?
Government correction how? From suppression I think you mean lowering their price? The scenario you're laying out doesn't make sense.
The point of this kind of product is to be the baseline, no capitalist should be able to afford to offer the same product for less, because the government already has the lowest possible margin.
You start by making a better product, and you can charge whatever people decide the improved product is worth. It's a good thing that an asshole capitalist can't market a $7 bar of chocolate when a very good quality one is $1. At that price difference, your chocolate better be amazing.
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Not to be outdone, Trump had the following announcement from the White House:
"Today, the USA introduced its new chocolate bar, priced at over $10. Made of 0% cocoa, hydrogenated corn syrup, and trans fats. No natural ingredients, no milk, no vanilla. It's bigly on flavor and very, very, tasty. We are taking pre-orders now at USAChocolate.gov."
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Hershey chocolate bar is rejected as chocolate because it doesn't have enough cocoa and is contaminated with lead.
Hershey's milk chocolate contains around 11% cocoa solids, meaning it doesn't meet the European standard according to some sources. Therefore, in some European countries, Hershey's is labeled as "chocolate-flavored" or "chocolate-flavored candy bar" rather than simply "chocolate".
The cadmium is actually part of a new marketing push: "Try Hershey's, they're Cadmiummy"
That actually made me want it a little, thank you
Makes me think of "American Cheese Product," "cheese" that is closer to plastic but tastes and feels like cheese.
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American slop producers in shambles
If you haven't had chocolate with vanilla in it, consider trying it. It's my favorite chocolate additive. You need to purge ideas about vanilla being sweet or creamy. It's a tobaccoy rich flavor that adds some depth even to dark chocolate.
As a kid we'd make our own milkshakes at home and the best ones we came up with were vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup.
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Since I discovered dark chocolate ice cream, I've been dying for someone to make a dark chocolate and vanilla twist soft serve.
I'd love to have a taste.
Too bad I live in Northern Europe...probably not worth buying via the Internet even if it was possible...
The lady doing the presentation said that it has 35% of cane sugar.
Also behind her you see "hecho con azúcar de caña" which means "made with cane sugar".
Cane sugar is generally at least a bit refined merely to purify it (so unlike High-Frutose Corn Syrup it's not made by chemically transforming something else).
That said, it's unclear if they use unrefined sugar cane, though that stuff is a complete total pita to work with hence I doubt it's not in the least bit refined.
Mind you I looked around and the info on this is all over the place: like for example saying "no added sugars" but then a bit further it turns out it has "cane sugar", which does mean that sugars were added (as the cocoa plant doesn't produce cane sugar, that would be the sugarcane plant).
Mind you, by all indications this beats almost all North American chocolates, but that hardly a tall barrier to overcome. It's pretty common to find similar stuff in European supermarkets.
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Not the news I was expecting but kind of a cool way to address a variety of issues, like obesity, imports from US, generating revenue, subsidizing a national crop, etc.
What is the objective behind selling the chocolate bars? I will have to delve deeper into the topic.
I would presume it's because they're low in sugar. Due to exploding diabetes rates, Mexico has been making a concerted effort in the last few years to stem the consumption of sugary foods, drinks and snacks, particularly amongst kids. You can't have a cartoon mascot on a box of cereal, for example. They put big stickers over Tony the Tiger before changing the packaging completely. And the cost of snack foods has skyrocketed, making it largely unaffordable for lots of Mexican families. A bag of chips there costs more than it does in North America.
My guess is that this is part of that effort.
Mexico is in North America
Makes sense. I recall watching a documentary showcasing how children were drinking from 2L soft drink bottles.
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this post was submitted on 11 Jul 2025
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