The largest chocolate factory in the world is in Belgium

The largest chocolate factory in the world is located in Wieze, Belgium. Barry Callebaut produces around 270,000 tonnes a year, from cocoa bean to chocolate, making it the largest chocolate supplier in the world.

Picture by Pixabay

In Wieze you will also find the first of the seventeen Chocolate Academy centers that have since been distributed all over the world. A completely new building was recently opened, making the Chocolate Academy center in Wieze the largest center in the world.

Picture by Pixabay

The Belgian chocolate sector exports its quality chocolate to the entire world. Two thirds of both the industrial chocolate and the end products are exported abroad. That's because there is a Belgian chocolate code developed in 2007. The Belgian chocolate code must ensure that the term 'Belgian chocolate' is only used for chocolate that actually comes from Belgium.

The blue forest

The Hallerbos is the most important and extensive forest area between Zenne and Zoniën. The forest is a public favorite thanks to the beautiful purple carpet of wild hyacinths that bloom around mid-April. The varied relief provides wonderful hiking opportunities and makes a visit to this forest more than worthwhile.

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The Hallerbos is located southeast of town of Halle. The forest is largely owned by the Flemish Region and a small part of the Walloon Region and private properties. The Hallerbos forms a quiet recreational area, which is highly appreciated by the population of the surrounding highly urbanized zones. It is very accessible thanks to the many paths.

The V sign was an invention of a Belgian radio presenter

The hand gesture in which you form the V of Victory was invented by a Belgian. The sign was conceived by engineer Victor de Laveleye. Victor Auguste de Laveleye was a doctor of law and participated as a tennis player in the Summer Olympics of 1920 and 1924. He was a municipal councilor in Saint-Gilles, chairman of the Liberal Party and representative of the people in the Brussels district. De Laveleye was also minister of justice and public education.

Victor de Laveleye

During the Second World War he was director of the Belgian French-language broadcasts on the BBC. He called on his countrymen to paint a V on all kinds of buildings as a resistance to the German occupier. It became popular after Winston Churchill publicly took over the gesture and in the sixties the symbol was given an extra meaning under the impetus of the hippie movement, namely that of peace.

Winston Churchill