Omnivore - Atlantan’s chocolate will save the world

• Cliff Bostock

Eater featured a lengthy interview with Taria Camerino, owner of Sugar Coated Radical, which recently marked its first anniversary. I like this exchange in particular:

You’ve also talked about the psychological effect of chocolate—how much does that play a part in your creative process?

A tremendous part. Because I understand flavor and emotional responses, it’s really great for us to be able to evoke that kind of response. I didn’t really know why I chose this field. For a long time I didn’t understand. Over the years I’ve slowly started to figure it out. Though I love what I do, I could do anything that positively influenced the world. When I was a kid, we had a club. I would find jobs for us so we could build a clubhouse, a place that was ours and safe. I was never the president. I was the treasurer, cause I knew it was the money that would get you somewhere. Every weekend they the kids would take the money to buy candy. I would say, “We’re never going to get the clubhouse if we keep throwing the money away.” I realized fairly early, the power of sugar is huge. People love sweets. I can have an effect on people. I can make them feel good and do good at the same time. That’s powerful. Chocolate is really powerful in that. I can use it communicate a message of paying attention to their purchases. I can use it for good.

I love that. Candy is destroying capitalism, at least among kids, to paraphrase Ayn Rand’s declaration about altruism.