As any good chocolate manufacturer knows, the difference between a fine chocolate and an average one is the smoothness of it as it melts in your mouth.

When chocolate is gritty, you know it’s not good. That’s why many manufacturers use machines with rolls to produce high-quality chocolate that has a smooth texture.

As chocolate runs through the machine, the rolls reduce particle size and maximize homogenization. (This process is similar to mixing a can of house paint. There are many ingredients in the can, but they’re not evenly distributed when you first open it.)

Unfortunately, too many chocolate manufacturers use poor-quality rolls that don’t achieve proper homogenization. They are left with a lesser-quality product and dwindling profits. 

Check out these three ways in which precision roll grinding is vital to the chocolate manufacturing process.

Drying The Chocolate Evenly

Most chocolate machines use five rolls. When the chocolate process begins, the product moves through the bottom rolls as a wet batch of raw ingredients. By the time it reaches the top roll, it should be transformed into a dry powder.

So, why do you need precision grinding for these rolls? 

Well, if they aren’t ground properly, they’re susceptible to inconsistencies on the surface. These imperfections mean the consistency to your product will be affected, and you will not be able to maintain a product with uniform particle size.

Improving Taste

Of course, the taste of chocolate is one of its most important qualities. Even if you were able to achieve the right particle size, you’d never achieve the same flavor without precisely ground rolls.

Chocolate simply tastes better when it is manufactured using quality rolls.

You need precision grinding to ensure that your rolls get the most flavor out of the chocolate beans. Only then are you able to homogenize the ingredients properly. With complete homogenization – a result of moving the ingredients through the rolls to distribute the ingredients evenly – you create more flavorful chocolate.

Rolls of average quality don’t do the job properly because inconsistencies make it impossible to attain the right level of homogenization. 

Increasing Yield

Shape and surface finish can’t be overemphasized, as these are vital qualities of a roll that produces fine chocolate. When you use rolls that are egg-shaped or uneven, the chocolate that’s processed along the edges of the rolls is not uniform with the chocolate that’s processed in the middle of them.

Done this way, you achieve less uniformity in the chocolate manufacturing process. That means a portion of your product will be unfit to sell, resulting in a lower yield and less profitability.

Round, concentric rolls produce a wider surface area of chocolate product. They allow for a larger yield of high-quality product, which means having more chocolate to sell to commercial buyers and consumers.

Uneven rolls are also more likely to damage one another and use excessive energy during the manufacturing process. In order for rolls to maintain their quality, precision grinding is necessary.

If you have questions about how the quality of your rolls is affecting your chocolate production, product quality and bottom line, be sure to speak with a precision grinding expert.