Touring Neil Robson’s Rebel Chocolate Factory

For World Chocolate Day, New Zealander and chocoholic Dr Neil Robson gave Glasgow Live an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour at Rebel Chocolate, where reporter Gary Armstrong discovered how Robson’s two-man mini factory was bringing healthy snacks to the Scottish city.

Robson, a former immunologist, has combined his scientific background with his love of chocolate to help create the guilt-free bars, Armstrong writes for the news publication.

He said: “Initially I started off as an immunologist a few years ago and a serious back injury basically made me rethink my career structure.

“I’ve always loved nutrition. I’ve always liked chocolate so what we decided to do is try and re-invent chocolate – adding a few scientific twists into how we make chocolate.

“We take really high quality cocoa, take out half the sugar that’s normally put into milk chocolate and we add in lactose-free whey protein from milk. We grind it for four or five days so it’s nice and smooth. That means our final chocolate bar has about 50 per cent less sugar than you find in a standard chocolate bar. Also, all our milk chocolates have 25 per cent protein in them.

“It’s not a protein bar – you’re meant to eat it and think ‘Wow! Amazing chocolate!’ You’re not meant to think it’s a protein bar. If you think it’s a protein bar, I’ve failed!”

Together with his colleague, Alan, the duo has recently started working on a matcha Japanese tea-flavoured chocolate, but their latest creation – a ‘peanut power’ bar, which is 100 per cent plant-based, is already receiving rave reviews.

Original article by Gary Armstrong, Glasgow Live, July 5, 2019.

Photo by Julie Howden.