Knowledge • Culture • Inspiration

The Cacao'Show:
Where Chocolate Tells Its Story

The Cacao'Show is the heart of Salon du Chocolat Toronto, a dedicated space for inspiring conferences, expert talks, and immersive chocolate education. Over three days, renowned speakers, researchers, chefs, and cacao producers take the stage to explore the most fascinating questions in the chocolate world.

Have you ever wondered how chocolate is made, or what truly separates a fine bean-to-bar chocolate from the rest? Are you curious about the difference between chocolate types, or where chocolate comes from? The Cacao'Show is your answer. Through guided chocolate tastings, immersive sensory sessions, and enlightening panel discussions, each talk invites you to see, smell, and taste chocolate in a whole new way.

Our program covers pastry trends and chocolate trends shaping the industry today — from reduced sugar and plant-based innovation to design, customer experience, and emerging market expectations. Experts will also dive into the health benefits of dark chocolate, exploring the growing body of evidence around whether chocolate is good for you and how conscious indulgence is redefining the industry.

Beyond the educational content, the Cacao'Show celebrates cultural animation and artistic representation — honoring the rich heritage of cacao from its tropical origins to the creative expressions of today's chocolatiers, designers, and storytellers. This is not just a conference stage. It is a living tribute to everything chocolate represents: craft, culture, community, and transformation.

Inspiring Conferences

Expert talks from world-renowned chocolatiers, chefs, researchers, and cacao producers exploring the most important questions in the chocolate world today.

Chocolate Education

Discover how chocolate is made from bean to bar, learn the difference between chocolate types, and understand where your chocolate truly comes from.

Guided Chocolate Tasting

Immersive sensory experiences exploring pairings, pastry trends, and the health benefits of dark chocolate — because yes, chocolate can be good for you.

Cultural Animation

Artistic representations and cultural moments celebrating the rich heritage of cacao, from its tropical origins to its place on the world stage.

Preliminary Program

3 Days of Knowledge

9:30–10:00 AM

Opening of the Cacao Show

Opening

Stage welcome with musical ambience.

10:00–11:00 AM

What Kind of Chocolate can be Kind?

Conference

What would it take to make chocolate truly “kind” to animals, people, and the planet? This presentation explores how innovation is reshaping chocolate, from cacao sourcing to precision fermentation, cultivated cocoa, and new cocoa alternatives.

Speaker: Azam Khan, PhD · Vegan Danish Bakery

11:15 AM–12:30 PM

Break / Visit the Exhibition Floor

Break

Time to explore the exhibitors and tasting stations.

12:30–1:30 PM

An Inspiring Pastry Story: A Conversation with a “Meilleur Ouvrier de France”

Career Portrait

Interview with a master of French pastry craft.

Speaker: TBC · Le Cordon Bleu

1:45–2:45 PM

Becoming a Pastry Chef: Education, Skills, and Career Paths

Career Portrait

Interactive discussion on training and professionalization in pastry.

Speaker: TBC · Centennial College

3:00–4:00 PM

Colombian Cacao: Unveiling the flavours of biodiversity

Cacao Origins

From cacao endemism to the difference between bulk and fine cacao — with a guided tasting of three different cacao genetics.

Speaker: César Aguilar · Cacaitos

4:15–5:15 PM

A little bean of story: cacao, community, and the hidden economics of living well

Responsible Cocoa

Who creates value in cacao, who captures it, and what is lost when value leaves origin too early — drawing on Indigenous perspectives on living well.

Speaker: Nataliya Petkova · Midnight Bloom Imports

5:30–6:00 PM

Artistic and Cultural Performance

WOW Moment

A WOW moment celebrating cocoa culture on stage.

6:00 PM

Day Closing

Closing

* Program subject to change. Some speakers to be confirmed (TBC).

First Announced Conferences

Meet the Speakers

Researchers, entrepreneurs, and cacao pioneers take the stage for the first announced conferences of the Cacao'Show — more speakers to be announced soon.

Azam Khan, PhD

Co-founder of Vegan Danish Bakery

What Kind of Chocolate can be Kind?

Friday, Nov. 20 · 10:00–11:00 AM

Azam Khan, PhD, is an entrepreneur, researcher, and lifelong advocate for sustainability and animal welfare. His family's vegan journey began in the mid-1980s, leading to the opening of Vegan Danish Bakery in 2010, followed by a second Toronto location in 2018 and a third now under construction. Azam is also Co-founder and CEO of Trax, holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Copenhagen, has taught at the University of Toronto, and has co-authored more than 80 research papers and 29 patents.

César Aguilar

CEO of Cacaitos

Colombian Cacao: Unveiling the flavours of biodiversity

Friday, Nov. 20 · 3:00–4:00 PM

César brings a scientist's rigor and a farmer's hands-on knowledge to the story of fine Colombian cacao. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Biology and a Master's in Sustainable Development and Environmental Management, and spent over a decade conducting scientific research across the Orinoco and Amazon river basins. In 2013 he left corporate life to build his own farm-to-bar cacao business. His two-ingredient chocolate bars celebrate eight biodiverse cacao varieties, each expressing its own natural flavour profile.

Nataliya Petkova

Cacao entrepreneur & business owner at Midnight Bloom

A little bean of story: cacao, community, and the hidden economics of living well

Friday, Nov. 20 · 4:15–5:15 PM

Nataliya Petkova is an engineer, entrepreneur, explorer, and multidisciplinary artist whose work brings together technology, philanthropy, creativity, and community development. She is the founder of Midnight Bloom, an organization dedicated to building lasting relationships around cacao and coffee — bringing exceptional beans from origin to North American and European markets and connecting professionals and consumers directly with producers.

Dr. Marney Isaac

Professor at the University of Toronto

Cocoa agroecosystems: sustainability and resilience in the face of multiple stresses

Saturday, Nov. 21 · 3:00–4:00 PM

Dr. Marney Isaac is a Professor in the Department of Physical and Environmental Sciences and the Department of Global Development Studies at the University of Toronto, former Canada Research Chair in Agroecosystems and Development, and co-Director of the university's Sustainable Food and Farming Futures Cluster. Her research develops social-ecological methods to generate insights into sustainable agriculture policy and practice.

Dr. Juan Marcelo Gómez

Institute of Innovation and Advanced Learning (IIAL)

The Human Story of Cacao: Traceability, Dignity, and Sustainable Markets

Saturday, Nov. 21 · 4:15–5:15 PM · followed by a book signing at 5:30 PM

Dr. Juan Marcelo Gómez founded the Institute of Innovation and Advanced Learning, a nonprofit conducting interdisciplinary and international applied research. His doctoral work examined sustainability, trade relationships, and producer livelihoods across the fine cacao value chains of Canada, Costa Rica, and Ecuador. With over 20 years of experience in international trade and supply-chain management, he pioneered the Whole-Chain International Standard to enhance ethical sourcing, authenticity, traceability, and sustainable value creation.

Karen Harper

Adjunct Professor at Saint Mary's University, Halifax

What can you find out about a chocolate bar from its wrapper?

Sunday, Nov. 22 · 11:45 AM–12:45 PM

Karen Harper is an adjunct professor, instructor, and scientific researcher at Saint Mary's University in Halifax. She teaches ecology, environmental science, and statistics — and is planning a course on the Geography of Chocolate! Passionate about chocolate all her life, she started her wrapper collection in 2000; it now counts over 3,000 chocolate bar wrappers from around the world, with a focus on single origin chocolate and bars with fair trade and sustainability stories.

Past Editions