Puratos Romania is preparing to introduce the profession of chocolatier in the Classification of Occupations in Romania

• The company will invest hundreds of thousands of euros in dual education that will deliver qualified labor for the pastry-confectionery and chocolate industry

Puratos Romania, part of the Belgian group Puratos, one of the most important global producers of innovative raw materials for the bakery, pastry and chocolate industry, has started the steps to register the profession of chocolatier in the Classification of Occupations in Romania (COR). By the end of the year at the latest, Romania should have this profession officially recognized, according to Puratos representatives.

Chocolatier, a job of the future for many young people

"In Romania, officially, there are very few chocolatiers and their training is difficult and expensive. There are even fewer artisanal chocolatiers dedicated exclusively to this field. An introductory course, which does not give you the assurance that you have mastered the trade of chocolatier, costs at least 2.000 euros in Belgium", said Gabriela Bereș, Puratos Regional Director for Central and Eastern Europe.

"Puratos Romania is working on an extensive market analysis to identify how many chocolatiers there are today in Romania and what kind of businesses they have. I believe that this profession, which will become more and more popular here and has a tradition of hundreds of years in Belgium, is promising and attractive to many young people. Our efforts are integrated: there is a need for dedicated legislation and recognition, but also access to education in this sense, starting from high school," explained Gabriela Bereș.

Dual education classes through the Bakery School program

The company also invests in the development of several dual education classes to deliver qualified workforce or future entrepreneurs trained for the pastry-confectionery and chocolate industry in Romania. For the next 10 years, it is preparing investments of hundreds of thousands of euros in the opening of vocational schools in a dual system for the bakery, pastry, confectionery and chocolate industry, within an integrated project called Bakery School.

The company has already initiated discussions with several educational institutions in the south and center of the country. "The first generation of future pastry chefs, bakers or chocolatiers finished the 15th grade. It is about a class of XNUMX children for whom we provided all the conditions (transportation, tablets for online school) and who learn daily, at the innovation center we have in Ilfov county, with the best teachers selected by us. Among them, we also have children who want to open a chocolate shop", explained Gabriela Bereș.

Cocoa Trace Program

At the same time, the company invests in sustainable cocoa farming, marketing and promoting sustainable chocolate, as part of the Cacao-Trace program. As part of this effort, Puratos signed a partnership with the master confectioner Carmela Dragomir, the new Belcolade Cacao-Trace Brand Ambassador.

The Cacao-Trace sustainability program, launched by the Puratos Group, aims to raise quality standards in the chocolate industry. Through the actions of this program, Puratos returns a part of the income made from the sale of sustainable chocolate to the farming communities that make a living from cocoa farming.

In Romania, Puratos encourages all confectionery producers, be they confectioners or chocolatiers, to join the campaign by using sustainable chocolate in their recipes, thus supporting cocoa production globally.