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The new 1000sqft chocolate factory will provide young people with hands-on manufacturing experience to help address STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) skills gaps
A new chocolate factory is set to open its doors in Barnsley to inspire and educate the next generation of UK manufacturing engineers.
The ‘JJA Snack’ facility is an initiative by JJA Pack – a global supplier of industrial chocolate-handling equipment to the likes of Mondelez and Premier Foods, based in South Yorkshire. It’s teamed up with long-term partner Siemens to create the advanced, commercially viable chocolate manufacturing line, which will give young people hands-on experience with the pioneering technologies used to manufacture chocolate bars.
Thousands of school kids will have the opportunity to learn about where chocolate comes from and how it is harvested, with pupils able to design a bar and create it on the JJA Snack production line. A group from Outwood Academy Shafton will be among the first to visit the site in Barnsley.
Meanwhile, engineering students will be able to learn about data capture, streamlining manufacturing processes, and energy efficiency.
The Sheffield Steelers and Leeds Knights ice hockey teams are among JJA Snack’s first customers for branded bars, with the facility also set to manufacture chocolate under its name.
The factory is set to open as Timothée Chalamet and Hugh Grant star in the Christmas blockbuster release Wonka, which tells the story of how the beloved Roald Dahl character Willy Wonka became a world-famous chocolate maker.