Science in small bites
The dismal future of chocolate and coffee
Do you love chocolate? I certainly do. Do you love coffee? I couldn’t live without it.
If you answered “yes” to either of those questions, you’ve no doubt noticed a considerable increase in the cost of satisfying your special craving for chocolate, and in the case of coffee, a daily necessity.
Dolly Parton acknowledged the necessity of that first cup of java in the morning with these immortal words: “Tumble out of bed, and I stumble to the kitchen / Pour myself a cup of ambition / And yawn and stretch and try to come to life.” I know what you mean, Dolly.
Yeah, yeah, the price of eggs is high too, but what good are your morning eggs without coffee? Chamomile tea just ain’t gonna do it.
Both cacao and coffee beans are beginning to be affected adversely by climate change. Some scientists predict that by 2050, both coffee and cacao may go the way of the Dodo.
If that happens, be assured, science is already experimenting with substitutes that mimic the flavor profiles of chocolate and coffee. As for chocolate, we could go back to the 1970s, when many people switched to carob to satisfy their chocoholic cravings. Carob was OK, but it’s certainly not a chocolate substitute that Godiva or Ghirardelli would likely consider.
Then came the 1980s, when Chocolate truffles were touted as “Sinfully delicious,” and other chocolate desserts as “Better than sex.” (Can I say that in The Pocahontas Times? Well, we’ll see real soon, won’t we?) Bottom Line – Chocolate has no peers when it comes to indulgence, so forget carob and wait to see what science has up its sleeve.
Rather than put all the blame for this uptick in coffee and chocolate prices on past and present leaders, although tariffs do figure in the equation, we can point a finger directly at climate change. Global catastrophes do not favor one political party or the other, although the failure to take steps to reduce greenhouse gases is very much a matter of politics.
So, the real question here is, do we consider the plight of future generations or let them sink or swim? – It’s just that simple.
The increased costs of both coffee and chocolate, products of tree species, are due to a variety of factors: climate change, drought, inflation and climate-driven crop diseases.
There is still the potential for the complete loss of the current species of cacao and coffee trees down the road. So, what is science doing to ameliorate the problem and continue to meet our demand for chocolate and coffee?
Plants, like all living things, thrive within a defined range of temperatures, and even incremental increases or decreases in ambient temperature can cause extinction, as seen with the megafauna of the last ice age.
One strategy is to develop crops that are resistant to higher temperatures and diseases. Science may accomplish this through grafting and gene editing, as we did to bring the American Chestnut back from extinction.
Another approach is something called Cellular Agriculture. This strategy includes lab-grown species where the climate and soil conditions are controlled. Then, there is a unique strategy where we abandon the cacao and coffee trees altogether and employ Precision Fermentation, which uses microbes to ferment various ingredients that simulate the complex flavors and notes of coffee and chocolate – very high tech and futuristic, as well as sustainable.
The Science of Sauerkraut and New Year’s Traditional Meals
In addition to recovering from New Year’s Eve over-indulgence, watching the Rose Bowl Parade, and making resolutions we will never keep, New Year’s Day offers several traditional meals throughout the U.S.
Though this sounds more cultural than scientific, many Americans will be sitting down to a meal of pork, mashed potatoes and something fermented – sauerkraut. This New Year’s menu originated in Germany, especially among the Pennsylvania Dutch who brought the tradition here.
Here’s the science part: Like beer, wine, kefir, kimchi and yogurt, sauerkraut is a fermented product, meaning that good bacteria (lactic acid bacteria) convert the sugars into lactic acid, which preserves the cabbage and confers a distinct flavor, and odor, I might add.
I make my own sauerkraut for the healthy gut biome it promotes, and it is as easy as falling off a log. I chop cabbage, green or red, to the desired size and add sea salt. Then one must massage the mixture until the cabbage releases its water. Then stuff the cabbage and liquid into a glass jar, cover with an air-lock lid, set it in a cool, dark area, and wait until the bubbles stop. Voila, you have homemade sauerkraut.
The trio of pork, potatoes, and sauerkraut symbolizes progress in the new year. Pork is so because a pig roots forward while a chicken scratches backward. (If you have chicken on New Year’s Day, you’re evidently living in the past.) The green of the cabbage (kraut) represents money and wealth, but I don’t know what mashed potatoes symbolize, other than it makes a perfect complement to the sauerkraut.
Another distinct traditional New Year’s meal is that of African Americans, with roots in Africa. The requisite four food items all represent good fortune in the new year, starting with black-eyed peas that symbolize coins and luck. Hopping John, a dish of rice and black-eyed peas, is common as well.
Hardy leafy vegetables such as collards, turnips, and mustard greens symbolize paper money, while cornbread represents wealth because of its golden hue. Many African-Americans eat pork on New Year’s for the same reason – progress in the new year.
John, from our Hidden Creek Amish community, assured me that the menu du jour on New Year’s Day will be pork, greens and mashed potatoes.
Traditions are good even in today’s busy modern world. They remind us of our roots. Regardless of our surnames, and, with the sole exception of Native Americans, we were all immigrants at some point. Our ancestors came to this country for a variety of reasons, including religious freedom, a better life, and, in the case of many African Americans, forcibly.
Here’s to all the readers of The Pocahontas Times: have a happy, healthy and prosperous 2026.
Ken Springer
ken1949bongo@gmail.com
