Visitors experience chocolate-making in southern Vietnam

The exhibit, operated by Xuan Ron Cocoa Company, allows visitors to roast, grind, blend, and mold cocoa beans into chocolate bars on-site along the Tien River. 

The display opened on Saturday at the My Tho cruise port and drew both domestic and international tourists.

Visitors participate directly in the process, creating their own chocolate bars to take home.

At the chocolate-making exhibit, Charlotte, a 38-year-old tourist from France, focused on stirring the hot cocoa. 

She said she had tried many types of chocolate in Europe, but this was her first time making a chocolate bar herself. 

She described the aroma as stronger and more intense than usual and said she expected the experience to be the most memorable part of her trip to the Mekong Delta.

Xuan Ron also introduced its Alluvia chocolate brand, sourced from Cho Gao cocoa plantations.

The company was founded in 2013 by Nguyen Hai Yen and Nguyen Ngoc Diep, who left careers in finance and automotive management to produce craft chocolate in southern Vietnam. 

It now offers more than 30 chocolate products incorporating local ingredients such as mango, ginger, cinnamon, and ‘mac khen,’ a regional Vietnamese pepper.

"Vietnamese cocoa is usually sold as raw beans. We wanted to produce chocolate from our own cocoa and share the story of our region," said co-founder Yen.

The company faced challenges including COVID-19 closures and fluctuating cocoa prices but has continued to expand its products and promote local cocoa.