I figured that, because box mentions that it is a Belgium company and that it contains Belgium chocolates, I am purchasing a product of Belgiumbut a recent class action lawsuit claims that the chocolates sold in the U.S. come from a factory in Reading, Pennsylvania. This leads me to believe that the chocolates made here must taste different because the ingredients and food regulations can’t be the same.
Anyone have info on this?
Godiva has a factory in Reading, PA, so I guess not.
The lawsuit is preposterous. The boxes don’t say they’re made in Belgium; they say they’re Belgian chocolate, which is a term of art, not a claim of where they are made. If McDonald’s sells me French fries I don’t bitch that they weren’t made by artisanal fry cooks in Paris.
Is there anything on the box saying they are made in Reading, Pennsylvania?
I can’t find an image of the BACK of a Godiva box that I can clearly read.
I think there is a bit of a difference between a Belgium company’s website describing chocolates made in Belgium selling Belgium chocolates, and “french” fries made right in front of you at your local McDonalds. Their website has a search function, but no hits for either “Reading” or “Pennsylvania”. I did find this old article from the Washington Post describing why the U.S. chocolates are different.
The ingredients may be the same; that the regulations will be somewhat different doesn’t mean they will be incompatible, or that the company will specifically chose different sources in different countries. Even if some of the materials are different (I expect they don’t import the water), the specifications for the material may be the same independently of the source.
Multinationals from all kinds of sectors including food have situations where the same list of ingredients is used in multiple factories all the time.
To qualify as “Belgian chocolate”, it’sgenerally accepted that at minimum the chocolate manufacturing must be done in Belgium. This means the refining, mixing and concheing. So it’s possible that the chocolate is made in Belgium but the chocolates are made in Pennsylvania (enrobing, moulding, truffling, etc). I don’t know whether that is the case, though. I know that is the case for a local Belgian chocolate manufacturer (whose chocalatiers were trained by the Belgian government)
Aunt Diana’s was better anyhow.
Question: does McDonald’s or any other chain sell “French” fries at all? Looking at a McD’s menuI see that they sell “fries” with no “French” in the name. Maybe that is for legal reasons.
Burger King and Wendy’s have “french fries” on the menu but, like I said, they are still made in full view of the customer.
See, I’ve never heard or regarded “Belgian chocolate” as a term of art, like French fries or Greek salad. It’s more like “French wine,” which, I would assume, means wine from France. I’ve never parsed “Belgian chocolate” as a moniker for a certain style of chocolates but rather simply as “chocolate from Belgium.” Same with a Swiss watch or a Swiss chocolate, for that matter–I expect those to be from Switzerland.
On the other hand, if it is a Belgian company making it abroad, then it’s a bit fuzzy. I could go either way there.
The article linked to in post #5 says that Godiva has the chocolate made at a central location and it shipped to factories worldwide. So all the chocolate is the same, it’s the chocolates that vary. Most US states restrict or ban the use of alcohol in the fillings, and there are other changes made that cater to “American tastes”.
That article is from 1994-I wonder if they still do it that way 25 years later?
It’s made in the U.S.
From their “History of Godiva” page:
https://www.godiva.com/careersGodivaHistory/careersGodivaHistory.html
"COMING TO AMERICA
A photo of two ladies looking into the window of a Godiva store in America in the 1960’s. In 1966, the Draps family came into contact with the American company Campbell Soup Company, which acquired one-third of a stake in Godiva that year. Thus, the American operation of the company was the first to introduce premium chocolate to the American palate. By 1968, Godiva Chocolatier, Inc., had begun domestic production, using the exclusive Belgian recipes.
GODIVA TODAY
A photo of two Godiva chocolatiers. The company has continued to grow and expand over the years. The U.S. plant in Reading, PA, now produces the same amount of chocolate for the U.S. market as the Belgian plant produces for the rest of the world. There are now over 270 Retail locations as well as over 2000 Wholesale doors. In addition to retail and production, Godiva runs a direct business ( www.godiva.com and 1-800-9-Godiva) and a wholesale merchandising sales force across the country. Godiva’s world headquarters are located in Midtown Manhattan."
As it happens, “french” fries refers to the potatoes being cut into thin strips. It’s a cooking term, and has nothing to do with France.
I’ve always wondered that myself, whether it referred to French cutting vegetables, but I can’t find anything definitive.
ETA: Actually, Wikipedia has a little more about this:
Emphasis mine.
When I was a kid, my father would return from overseas trips with big Toblerone bars, which he bought in places like the duty-free shops in Frankfurt Airport. Now you can buy Toblerone bars in places like Target. It used to be that there were certain things available only in their country of origin (or even only in their city of origin) and they represented a special gift when someone brought them back to you. Now, pretty much everything is available everywhere, any time, and while that’s good for many reasons, the specialness is gone.
I don’t know about the boxes, but the images of chocolate bar wrappers I’ve found all have a NYC address. Presumably their world headquarters mentioned above.
Unless you’re Japanese, where the regional souvenir sweet is still very much a thing (part of a larger regional souvenirculture). I really look forward to visits from our Japanese associates.