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Chocolate, even in its earliest history, was a product of great desire that was considered, as the name implies, the food of the gods. The Maya and Aztec saw it as a warm or cold drink, often drunk as alcoholic beverage that was bitter in taste but also it was associated with religious ceremony. With the conquest of the New World, the Spanish brought cacao back to the Old World. For a time, the Spanish even dominated the production of cacao and, therefore, chocolate production. Mixing cacao with honey and sugar made chocolate a more desired product in Europe. Soon, with the backing of the elite and nobles in Europe, chocolate became a highly valued drink. It was only in the early 19th century did chocolate become easier to produce and by the mid-19th century it finally could be produced in a solid form. By the late 19th century, chocolate became a mass consumption item that spread to all classes. Many well known brands soon developed by the early 20th century. Innovations in preservation helped chocolate to be used in a variety of foods and products. While chocolate's importance is undisputed among foods around the world, the basic cacao beans used have now mostly grown in volatile West Africa. This has, unfortunately, at times, led to difficult production circumstances and even modern slavery.

==References==

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