A promised trip to Rome (the Eternal City) for my aged aunt to celebrate her 75th birthday finally came off this weekend.  When Hannah (the one person that keeps Wendy and I totally on track!) suggested I try a particular Coffee & Chocolate shop, St Eustacio's - just behind the Pantheon - I thought I’d better do as I’m told.  I’m glad I did!  As we sat in the Roman sun, under the shadow of the Pantheon, sipping what has to be one of the finest cups of hot chocolate I've ever had, I thought I'd tell you a few chocolaty facts!

Did you know...

7.4 million tonnes of chocolate are eaten globally each year

50% of that 7.4 million tonnes is eaten by us Europeans

Over 50 million people rely on the cocoa bean for their livelihood

Over 80 million chocolate eggs are sold each year in the UK

This year dark chocolate sales hit £85 million an increase of 96% in two years

In September this year cocoa sales reached an all time high of £2055 a tonne

How valuable are the brands? Well each year Cadbury's Dairy Milk sells £451 million, Galaxy sells £158 million and Twix £135 million

Belgium is the world’s largest exporter of chocolate

Finally, the top 10 consumers per kilo per head:
Ireland – 11.9
Switzerland – 10.8
UK – 10.1
Belgium – 9.8
Norway – 9.7
Germany – 9.3
Sweden – 8.3
Denmark – 7.4
Finland – 7.2
Austria – 6.9  (Come on Austria, must try harder 1,000 times!)

Something to think about next time you take a break...