Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate will be offering The Chocolatier’s Workshop: Confectionary Essentials Sept. 29-Oct. 1, in Lititz, Pa.

The $900 fall workshop is geared toward aspiring chocolatiers and anyone else in the industry looking for new ideas on how to effectively create an attractive product and market their business in an increasingly competitive marketplace.

The Chocolatier’s Workshop is an intimate and interactive, three-day seminar led by senior staff at Cargill along with a select team of outside professionals. It focuses on teaching time-tested techniques for making superb chocolate products and how to make those products stand out. Breakfast and lunch will be served to participants all three days in addition to a celebratory dinner.

Course instructors include:

• Joe Sofia graduated from Cornell University and spent 10 years working for Nestlé USA in various capacities before joining Peter’s Chocolate as a district sales manager in 1995.
• Parra Vaughan is an independent marketing consultant serving clients in the publishing, food manufacturing, energy, transportation and financial services industries.
• Courtney LeDrew has been managing the Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate family of product brands for more than 10 years.
• Rick Schwartz has more than 30 years experience in R&D and QC in the chocolate and confectionery industries.

The workshop days will be broken down as follows:

• Day One:The focus of the first day is the art of chocolate: the first steps, choosing a site location, determining the correct product mix, selecting and purchasing the right equipment, and branding and packaging your product.
• Day Two: The second day deals with the fundamentals of marketing: advertising and promotion, the legal and operational landscape, structuring and registering your business properly, and understanding your legal rights and obligations.
• Day Three: The final day focuses on the science of chocolate: the theory and practice of tempering chocolate along with confectionery making 101.

The Chocolatier’s Workshop is limited to ten participants who meet the workshop qualifications. For more information or to register, contact Heather Stierly at (717) 626-3246 or email chocolate@cargill.com.