One of its kind: K’taka’s first ever chocolate park to come up in Puttur

Mangaluru: Most people like chocolate and some absolutely love it. During holidays like Valentine’s Day, Friendship Day, Raksha Bandhan, Easter, Mother’s Day, Halloween, Chanukkah, and Christmas, it’s a beloved treat. And that’s true of non-holidays as well.

Here’s good news for the chocolate lovers of Karnataka as the first-ever chocolate park 0f the state will be coming up in Pearl City Puttur of Dakshina Kannada district.

The Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Cooperative Limited (CAMPCO) will be setting up the park within their premises in Kavu, near Puttur.

CAMPCO currently has a factory in Puttur that produces nearly 23 varieties of chocolates.

Sharing the news President of CAMPCO, Kishore Kumar Kodgi, said, “Many people go to cities like Mahabaleshwar, Ooty and other places to experience the making of chocolate, therefore we have dicided to create something like that here in Karnataka.

“There’s a small hilltop nearby which is a popular tourist spot called Hanuman betta. On their way there, people can stop and take a look at the making of the chocolate, experiencing the taste of freshly made chocolate,” he added.

He further saud, “Because of regulations placed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), we cannot entertain guests. Our main intention behind the creation of the park is to not only show people how chocolates are made but to give them a memorable journey.”

“We are building a huge warehouse to store cacao, areca nut and pepper that cost us nearly Rs 30 crore and is spread across 2.5 acres of land. We are hoping that the chocolate park is made within the budget of Rs 3 to 4 crore. The engineer has recently surveyed the area and will chalk out the structure of the park. However, the primitive plan has been approved and the firm will begin to look for consultants to execute it after the final plan is approved,” said Kodgi.

Reportedly, the work for the model chocolate factory will conclude by March-April this year and creation of a small children’s play area, artificial waterfalls and the chocolate store will begin thereafter.