Book Review: 'Chocolate Wars' and the Sustainable Organization Concept

This report reviews Deborah Cadbury's 'Chocolate Wars,' which chronicles the history of the chocolate industry, focusing on the Cadbury family and their business practices. The book traces the industry's evolution from its Aztec and Mayan origins through the Victorian era, highlighting key players like Nestle, Hershey, and Mars. It explores the Quaker values that shaped Cadbury's philanthropic ventures and commitment to employee welfare. The review discusses the book's narrative style and its anecdotes, such as the invention of the Milky Way and Dairy Milk bar. It also examines the impact of the Kraft takeover on Cadbury, the loss of its Quaker origins, and the emotional connection the company had with its consumers and employees. The report emphasizes the importance of marketing and financial practices in the current market and the book's portrayal of the chocolate industry's history.

Running head: THE SUSTAINABLE ORGANIZATION
The Sustainable Organization
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

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The chocolate industry in the world has a far reaching history that brings about many
interesting facts about the product and its inception. The chosen book for review in this essay
is the ‘Chocolate Wars’ by Deborah Cadbury. The book was first published in the year 2010.
It is a biography and speaks about the history of the family that is involved in the chocolate
industry around the world. The book review will delve into deeper critique and commenting
on the book and the essay will provide an understanding of the contents of the book.
The Chocolate Wars is a book that takes the reader through a fascinating history of
the product, starting from its Aztec and Mayan origins till the Victorian Era. The rise of the
chocolate industry is narrated in the book along with the role of the author’s family in it.
Around 1860, the Quaker Brother duo, Richard and George Cadbury, in Birmingham were
the owners of a small factory that tried to figure out the usage of newly discovered
commodity known as the cacao or cocoa. In the initial days it was sold in the form of a drink
but not in the kind of sweet and creamy taste it is known today. George Cadbury said that the
drink had only one-fifth of cocoa while the rest was potato flour. It was till the end of 19th
century that the confectioners had not found the right way to utilize the cocoa and turn it to a
refined and edible product. Deborah Cadbury in her book presents the race between the
various companies who wished to make profits from chocolate and some of the notable
names in the competition were- Nestle, Hershey, Lindt and Mars (Cadbury 2010).
The book follows a flat and perfunctory style of narration but however it provides
some of the best anecdotes related to the chocolate industry. The stories of the invention of
the Milky Way, and the popular Diary milk bar which took the company to a different level
of success altogether are some of the most interesting ones. The journey of chocolate being a
bittersweet treat to divine milk chocolates has been presented in the book and the credit for
the transformation of chocolate to such divinity has been given to the Swiss. The strong
values of the Quaker ancestors that shaped the business have been mentioned in the book.

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The author mentions that when the Cadbury Empire was established, the most of the profits
went to philanthropic ventures from the family. This was a family-situated firm that
underlined considerate working conditions and quality items over the primary concern. Some
portion of what makes this book so retaining is the ambiguity of the grim Quaker
development, with its hopeful estimations of social equity, motivating such a wanton,
sensuous obsession as chocolate. Cadbury also mentions the fact that the people today are
removed from aesthetic feeling that is related to chocolates due to obesity that is increasing in
people around the world.
The book ends on a sad note as it narrates the story of the takeover of Cadbury by
Kraft Foods in the year 2010 (Pai and Subramanian 2014). The company that was more than
150 years old in age was removed from its Quaker origins. It was estimated by the author in
the book that in the days to come, the company will have a hard time maintaining its image
and identity in the market. The book provides a detailed description of the battle between
Cadbury and Kraft foods. Deborah refers to the CEO of Kraft, Irene Rosenfeld, as a
villainous person. The taking up of the company has emotionally influenced all those who
were associated with the organization, the organization created an emotional connect with the
consumers and the employees.
The book is a good read to understand the industry and the various histories that are
related to the industry. The Cadbury Company is one of the oldest in the market and people
have resorted to for the chocolates for decades in the past. The people in the organization are
attached to the values of the family that owned the company. The book by Deborah rightly
points out some of the best practices of the organization. Though it can be said that the book
has a slow pace and the narrative is not up to the mark, the anecdotes provided by the author
makes up for it. The stories intrigue the readers to know more about the company and as it is
one of the most popular companies in the world, people find it interesting to read the

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anecdotes and know about the various aspects of the chocolate industry. Deborah rightly
points out that the present market is all about the various marketing practices and the
financial aspects of a company, her portrayal of the vibrant history keeps the reader hooked
on to the pages of the Chocolate Wars. The book though is a family biography; it makes sure
that the reader has multiple thoughts in mind after putting the book down. The fate of
Cadbury is a sad one and Deborah has penned down beautifully about the fall of the giants
who once topped the charts for chocolate in the entire world.

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Reference
Cadbury, D., 2010. Chocolate wars: Fron cadbury to kraft: 200 years of sweet success and
bitter rivalry. Vancouver: Douglas and Macintyre.
Pai, V.S. and Subramanian, R., 2014. Kraft Foods, Inc. in India—The Cadbury
Acquisition. Asian Case Research Journal, 18(02), pp.371-399.