Fascinating chocolate facts that might surprise you
Mordor Intelligence pegs it at $109.13 billion (£86bn) in 2024, which is the lowest figure we've come across. Confectionery News cites a figure of $128 billion (£101bn), while Statista puts the 2024 value at $254.1 billion (£200bn).
That translates to just under 2.2lb (1kg) of chocolate per person per year, though the figure for the country with the highest per-capita consumption is almost nine times greater...
America is also the number one chocolate importer, with annual imports of $3.8 billion (£3bn), over a billion dollars more than runner-up, Canada. All in all, Americans consume just under three million metric tons of chocolate each year.
Although America is the leading chocolate market, the nation is ranked only 18th in terms of consumption per person, which averages 9.7lb (4.4kg) per year.
Europeans consume significantly more chocolate per capita. Switzerland leads the way: the typical Swiss person polishes off 19.4lb (8.8kg) of the sweet treat per year. Austria is next with 17.9lb (8.1kg), followed by Germany and Ireland at 17.4lb (7.9kg), and the UK at 18.8lb (7.6kg).
At the other end of the scale, Brazil, South Africa, Japan, and China consume far smaller amounts of chocolate. World Population Review claims China comes in last place, eating a meagre 0.2lbs (0.1kg) a year.
Research from Swiss-Belgian firm Barry Callebaut, the world's leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products, has found the confection appeals to all five senses thanks to its "colour, snap, mouthfeel, and complexity of flavours and aromas".