The Barry Callebaut Group has announced the launch of its second Chocolate Academy Center in the United States, located in New York City. This new facility serves as a creative space where chefs and artisans can develop their talent and skills.

The new Chocolate Academy Center will be located in the Meatpacking district. The city is known for attracting top talent from around the world in various industries including confectionery, pastry and chocolate, making it the ideal spot for a new location.

“New York City has a long history with the chocolate industry, dating back to the early 1900s,” says Amy Heitkamp, VP & GM Gourmet Americas at Barry Callebaut. “We are seeing a resurgence of chocolate culture in New York with the craft-chocolate movement and small bean-to-bar factories. We are proud to share chocolate culture and empower chefs to craft at their best; we partner with our customers to create the chocolate treats of tomorrow.”

The Chocolate Academy Center NYC is part of a wider network which now has 27 academies across the globe.

“New York City continues to be a core place of growth and culture for the Americas. We look forward to serving as the premier place of chocolate and cocoa innovation in a city with a long-standing food culture,” says Steve Woolley, president & CEO Americas at Barry Callebaut. “In Region Americas, we currently have four Chocolate Academy centers which hosted over 13,800 participants in 2022. We are thrilled to open our fifth location in a city with such deep ties to chocolate indulgence and cannot wait to get chocolate professionals in the door to learn from our best-in-class instructors and chefs.”