Salpa’s Jean-Paul Burrus hosts the European Candy Kettle Club in France.

The European Candy Kettle Club recently honored Salpa’s Jean-Paul Burrus. Visiting the French-based company meant staying in Strasbourg, France, which is right near the French-German border. As such, both cultures influence not just the city’s architecture, but also Salpa’s approach to business.

The company, which makes candy and tea, among other things, perfectly blends the creative and passionate approach to life that the French proudly exhibit, with the practical and business-focused approach the Germans are known for. It’s a perfect approach that is guaranteed to propel the company long into the future.

At Candy Industry’s 73^rd Kettle Awards, Mitchell Goetze, ceo of Goetze’s Candy Co., received the industry’s most prestigious award — the copper kettle.

Candy Industry hosted a reception and dinner to celebrate him and the other nominees, which included: Craig Leva, president and owner Arway Confectioners/Long Grove Confectionery; Chris Reid, president and ceo of the Piedmont Candy Co.; and Jean Thompson, president and ceo of Seattle Chocolate Co.

Raimundo Mororó, a retired researcher from the Executive Committee of the Cocoa Farming Planning (Ceplac), built a chocolate processing facility on Farm Riachuelo near Ilheaus, Brazil. There he produces chocolates using cocoa beans harvested from the farm and marketed under the Mendoá name. The company most recently exhibited its product line at the Salon du Chocolat in Paris last year.