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Barry Callebaut opens 20th Chocolate Academy in Milan

28 Jun 2017

Barry Callebaut has opened its 20th Chocolate Academy centre in Milan, Italy, led by Davide Comaschi, winner of 2013’s World Chocolate Masters.

Barry Callebaut has opened its 20th Chocolate Academy centre in Milan, Italy, led by Davide Comaschi, winner of 2013’s World Chocolate Masters.

“The future for chocolate is bright, whether you look at it from an innovation perspective, or from a perspective of creativity, or from the perspective of new applications,” said Massimo Garavaglia, Vice President EMEA. “Therefore, it’s really a good moment for all of us to celebrate.”

“The success of our recent academy openings in Moscow, Dubai and Istanbul makes me confident that our new academy in Milan will turn out to be very successful very soon too, and I am sure that with this we have created something really beautiful for Italy, and even more so for the city of Milan.”

“You know that I’m Italian,” he continued. “The special thing with this academy is that it will be Italian in the best sense of the word, led by Davide Comaschi, an Italian chef who has collected a great experience in recent years - this excellence and creativity are difficult to find and really valuable for us. In addition, it will be the first academy to develop recipes for artisanal gelato with real Belgian chocolate.”

“I am convinced that this is only the start. Others may view Italy as a mature market and a difficult one, where you don’t need to invest, but I believe that this is the right moment to invest, and I am sure that the academy will be a way to draw a promising future for chocolate in Italy."

The Chocolate Academy centre in Milan is a teaching and training centre for professionals of all levels and all Barry Callebaut customers who are interested in improving their chocolate skills or learning new techniques, trends and recipes for the Italian market. In addition, the academy will act as the global centre of excellence for chocolate gelato (artisanal chocolate ice cream) and hosts the first ChocoGelato Lab, dedicated to this truly Italian craftsmanship.

The ChocoGelato lab develops artisanal ice cream with real chocolate.

“Milan has become the Italian capital of chocolate in recent years,” said Academy head Davide Comaschi. “It is in fact the city where the Salon du Chocolat, the Italian edition of the prestigious Parisian kermesse, takes place, and the place chosen by an undisputed market leader as the Barry Callebaut group to host its 20th Chocolate Academy centre, the first in Italy.”