It’s Valentine’s Day this Sunday, and Americans will buy $1.1 billion of confectionery to mark the occasion, according to data from the Washington-based National Confectioners Association (NCA). That’s up 2.6 percent from last year and the most since at least 2011. About three-quarters of that will be chocolate.
The volume of US retail chocolate sales is expected to drop 0.6 percent to 1.37 million tons this year, according to market research company Euromonitor International, down from 1.7 million tons in 2006. To counter this trend, and offset rising cocoa costs, manufacturers such as Hershey Co., Mars Inc. and Lindt & Spruengli AG are pushing pricier, premium chocolate. In the five years to 2015, US sales of plain dark-chocolate bars rose 35 percent to $618.9 million, compared with a 16-percent increase for plain milk chocolate, according to Euromonitor. Some consumers are also opting for dark chocolate because of its perceived health benefits, according to the NCA.
When it comes to chocolate consumption, Americans ranked joint 19th in 2015, Euromonitor says. The average person in the US ingested 4.3 kilograms (9.5 pounds) last year, while the chocolate-guzzling crown went to the Swiss, each of whom ate 9.1 kilograms on average. There’s little prospect of these numbers
going much higher.
“People are already eating an awful lot of chocolate, and it’s a pretty saturated market,” said Jack Skelly, a Euromonitor analyst in London.
More than 400,000 US jobs—in industries including agriculture, retail and transportation—rely at least in part on the confectionery business, according to the NCA. Manufacturers of chocolate, candy, gum and mints directly employ 55,000. The biggest concentration of chocolate-related jobs can be found in a county in Pennsylvania—no surprise, perhaps, given that the Keystone State is home to Hershey.
Boxed chocolates are great, but they’re also the most cliché thing you could possibly give someone on Valentine’s Day. If you’re looking for alternatives, order something special from a fantastic bakery that makes other kinds of sweet things too, and ships them, like colorful macarons or crisp-edged canelés.
New-school macarons
Lafayette Bakery’s superstar baker Jennifer Yee is making extra-sweet macarons for Valentine’s Day, stamped with cute sayings just like the original Necco conversation heart candies. The box is a mix: crème de cassis, lemon-lime, raspberry-rose, orange, matcha and birthday cake. (Box of 6, $17; shop.lafayetteny.com)
Japanese candies
Give the gift of cute, colorful, hard-to-find Japanese sweets. Japan Crate ships mixed crates once a month, and you have a few days to sign up in time for the February crate. Previous orders have included rainbow marshmallows a single 50-inch long gummy worm and soy sauce pretzels (with toy included!). (1 crate per month at $24 per month; japancrate.com)
Quirky ice cream
The Portland-based artisanal scoop shop will ship five pints of their strange and delightful flavors, from black truffle to bacon-banana-peanut butter. (5 pints, $65; saltandstraw.com)
Hard candy
These adorable old-fashioned candies are masterfully hand-shaped in San Francisco, so they hide tiny messages and pictures at their cores. (100g jar, $11; papabubble.com)
Kouign-amann
Dominique Ansel makes one of the finest pastries in New York and, no, it’s not the cronut. The Kouign-amann is a
buttery, flaky gem from Breton, layered with caramelized sugar—during summertime it made for one fantastic ice cream sandwich. The best time to give it to someone is first thing in the morning, so they can nibble it with coffee. (Box of 4, $22; dominiqueansel.com)
Canelés
You already know about Épicerie Boulud’s stunning Nutella croissant, but what about Francois Brunet’s canelés? These tiny, custard-like cakes are baked extra dark so the edges are crisp, and the vanilla-scented center is almost creamy. (Box of 6, $29; epicerieboulud.com)
Crack pie
Show your roommates or colleagues you love them with one of Milk Bar’s classic, crowd-pleasing crack pies. It’s got a crumbly oat crust and a super sweet, almost chewy butter filling, plus this time of year it’s dusted with an icing sugar heart. (10-inch pie, $46; milkbar.com)
Caramels
The San Francisco bakery turns out some of the most perfect caramels we’ve ever had using smoked butter: tender, chewy (but not too chewy!), and with just the right amount of salt. (1 bag, $12; craftsman-wolves.com)
Old-School Macarons
If you need something serious-looking, Ladurée is the master of luxuriously packaged macarons. These are tender, glossy and not overfilled. Choose a range of flavors when you order, but don’t miss the rose petal, violet-cassis and pistachio. (Box of 20, $58; postmates.com).