Welcome to the

Aggie Chocolate Factory

The Aggie Chocolate factory is part of the Nutrition, Dietetics, and Food Sciences Department at Utah State University.

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Hours of Operation

Mon-Fri: 9am - 8pm
Sat: 11am - 6pm
Sundays: Closed

How do we make our bean-to-bar chocolate?

Step 1: Sourcing Beans

Step 2: Sorting and Roasting Beans

The Aggie Chocolate Factory souces its cacao internationally. Beans are pulled out of cacao pods, fermented, and dried before being shipped directly to Logan, Utah.

The beans are then hand-sorted to separate out inedible items and unusable beans. Good beans are placed in the roasting machine and the rest are used for research.

Step 3: Winnowing

Step 4: Conching

After the beans are roasted, they are placed in the winnowing machine, which separates the shell from the beans. They are crunched into cocoa nibs, ready for pre-grinding.

The finely-ground cocoa nibs are then placed into the melanger machine, where they are mixed into liquid and refined. Sugar is added at this point to sweeten the chocolate.

Step 5: Blocking and Tempering

Step 6: Molding

The chocolate is then set in blocks to age, which improves the flavor. Tempering melts the blocks down to make it smooth, silky, and glossy. This gives the chocolate a clean snap when broken or bitten into.

The chocolate is then poured into molds and placed in the fridge to set. Every chocolate bar is inspected for imperfections. If the bar is not fit for sale, it is placed back into the tempering machine.

Step 7: Packaging

Then the chocolate bars are hand-wrapped and packaged to be ready for sale.

Step 8: In the Hands of the Consumer

The Thistle and Rose Aggie Chocolate bars are enjoyed by the public, as well as used in the pastries sold in the Aggie Chocolate Factory Café.

Aggie Chocolate Factory

The Aggie Chocolate Factory (ACF), Learning and Research Center for the College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences, is a small batch, bean-to-bar chocolate processing facility located at Utah State University.

The mission of the ACF is to provide educational, research, and outreach opportunities to faculty, students, chocolate producers, and the local community about our high-quality bean-to-bar chocolate.

This opportunity is extended to students, industry professionals, the public, and the people that work with and for the ACF. We aim to provide this possibility with attention to quality, safety, and efficiency in a professional, cooperative, and collaborative working environment. We strive to provide an exceptional chance for all to learn about chocolate and its production.