Mr. Nguyen Hong Huy (32 years old) has developed a chocolate tempering machine with a capacity of 40 kg per hour, priced at half that of imported machines.
Tempering is a crucial and costly step in the chocolate production process from cocoa beans. Before tempering, cocoa beans undergo several stages such as roasting, shelling, grinding, and pressing for butter…
Engineer Nguyen Hong Huy stated that to achieve a smooth and glossy chocolate bar, the tempering process plays a decisive role. Tempering machines adjust the temperature differently (ranging from approximately 30 to 50 degrees Celsius) to ensure that the components, including chocolate butter, sugar, and cocoa beans, blend together well. If the tempering process is not correct, the chocolate bar will develop a bloom of fat and sugar crystals on the surface, affecting both the aesthetic and quality of the product. “When eaten, chocolate should melt completely in the mouth; if there are still crystals, the product is considered low quality,” said Mr. Huy.
Chocolate tempering machine developed by Mr. Huy. (Video: NVCC)
Currently, many domestic chocolate processing companies use imported machines from the United States, Germany, China, etc., which are expensive, costing around 400 to 500 million VND for a capacity of 40 kg or more. In light of this, in 2019, Huy invented a fully domestic product with equivalent quality but priced at over 200 million VND.
The machine is designed with a capacity of 40 kg per hour and consists of four main components: a temperature control system, a grinding blade assembly, a vertical pump, and a control unit. When the ingredients, including chocolate butter, sugar, and cocoa beans, are placed into the mixing tray, the grinding blades rotate in a circular motion to mix the ingredients together. Meanwhile, the temperature control system will appropriately adjust the heat to ensure the components blend together optimally. According to Mr. Huy, the temperature adjustment process must be flexible to prevent the chocolate from burning at high temperatures and crystallizing at low temperatures. After the tempering process, the chocolate mixture is poured into molds, cooled, and then removed from the molds.
The tempering machine can still produce defective products at a rate of about 10%, meaning that some chocolate bars may crystallize. In such cases, the defective products are placed back into the tray and re-tempered according to the previous process to rectify the issue. The product has now completed its commercial version, and preparations for industrial design registration are underway, ready to be transferred to interested enterprises.
“If the product is commercialized, it will help cocoa product manufacturers expand production at lower costs,” Mr. Huy stated.
Author Nguyen Hong Huy (left) with the chocolate tempering machine. (Photo: Ha An)
Mr. Huy shared that he spent over a year researching and experimenting with the product at a mechanical workshop in Thu Dau Mot, Binh Duong. As an automotive technology engineer without expertise in thermal technology, he self-studied materials and purchased old heating and cooling systems for multiple tests to evaluate their suitability. In February 2020, after finalizing the product, he shared it with the international chocolate manufacturing community. Subsequently, Huy received purchase offers from several companies in India, Cameroon, and more.
Mr. Arnold Epanty, CEO of Mandop Foods – a food processing company in Cameroon, believes that the only competitive factor for chocolate tempering machines currently is price, as many companies worldwide offer various types. He expressed his impression of Huy’s product, showcasing significant technological investment, as the heating structure is inherently challenging and complex.
He noted that if Huy’s machine is priced lower than other existing machines while maintaining equivalent quality, it has great potential for market development in various countries, with a high likelihood of success. “If Vietnamese companies meet these requirements, we are ready to purchase to expand production,” Mr. Arnold Epanty shared in the forum.
