Sweet dreams are Congolese
刚果的巧克力工厂
翻译：凤梨是只胖柯基
检阅：Yates
图源：网络，版权归原作者一切，侵删
A Belgian chocolatier opens a factory in the jungle
比利时巧克力大师佩索内涵刚果森林里开了一家工厂
DOMINIQUE PERSOONE, the bad boy of Belgian chocolate, has served powdered chocolate that has been snorted like cocaine at a party for the Rolling Stones and had the sticky stuff drizzled on naked women for a photo shoot. His latest escapade is making chocolate in the jungles of eastern Congo.
比利时巧克力界的“坏男孩”多米尼克·佩索内(DOMINIQUE PERSOONE)曾在滚石乐队(Rolling Stones)的派对上做过粉末状巧克力，这种巧克力像可卡因相同被啃咬。他把这种黏糊糊的东西洒在裸体女性身上，招供摄影。他最近的一次冒险是在刚果东部的森林里做巧克力。
The scheme is less madcap than it may sound. The factory is just outside the Virunga National Park, a vast reserve that is home to endangered mountain gorillas and other wildlife. The park is threatened by hundreds of militiamen who poach its animals, and by farmers who sneak in to plant crops. One way of protecting it is to create jobs by making posh chocolate from local cocoa.
这个方案并不像听起来那么张狂。这家工厂就在刚果维龙加国家公园(Virunga National Park)外。维龙加国家公园是一个巨大的自然维护区，是濒危的山地大猩猩和其他野生动物的家乡。公园遭到数百名偷猎动物的民兵和悄悄溜进公园栽培作物的农人的要挟。维护它的一种办法是用当地的可可豆制造高级巧克力来发明就业机会。
The new factory sandwiched between dense rainforests and the Rwenzori mountains will churn out up to 5,000 bars a week. Many will be sold in Mr Persoone’s shops in Antwerp and Bruges.
新工厂夹在茂盛的热带雨林和鲁文佐里山脉（Rwenzori mountains）之间，每周将出产多达5000块巧克力。大部分将在佩索内先生在安特卫普和布鲁日的商铺出售。
The factory runs on hydroelectric power generated in the park, as do nearby soap and chia-seed factories. Emmanuel de Merode, the park director, hopes reliable power will attract more investment. “People have perceptions of eastern Congo as a disaster area,” he says. “We can create excellent chocolate and show them it is not.” But the region still faces huge problems. Just after seeing off an outbreak of Ebola, cases of covid-19 are cropping up. Mountain gorillas are susceptible to it, so Virunga has closed its gates to tourists.
这家工厂依托公园里的水力发电，和邻近的番笕厂和种子厂相同。公园主管伊曼纽尔·梅洛德（Emmanuel de Merode）期望牢靠的电力能招引更多的出资。“人们认为刚果东部是灾祸之地，”他说。“咱们我们能够（在这里）做出甘旨的巧克力，然后告知他人状况不是这样。但该区域依然面临着巨大的问题。就在埃博拉病毒迸发后不久，又呈现了“新冠病毒”病例。山地大猩猩很简单遭到新冠病毒的影响，所以维龙加国家公园不得不对游客封闭了大门。
At the chocolate factory, Jacqueline Zawadi gossips with two fellow workers as they shell cocoa beans. Her husband was one of the more than 200 rangers who have been killed by poachers or militiamen since 1996. The park has employed her since his death. Three other factory workers peer into a whirring machine. Dark chocolate swirls around as it mixes with sugar and butter. Fresh chilli and ginger are sprinkled into some batches to give the chocolate an extra kick. “It is not quite perfect,” admits Roger Marora, a worker. “But it is very nearly perfect.”
在巧克力工厂，杰奎琳·扎瓦迪(Jacqueline Zawadi)与两位搭档一边剥可可豆，一边闲谈。她的老公是自1996年以来被偷猎者或民兵杀戮的200多名护林员之一。自从他身后，公园就雇佣了她。别的三名工人凝视着嗡嗡作响的机器。黑巧克力在与糖和黄油混合的进程中会构成漩涡。一些批次的巧克力会撒入一些新鲜的辣椒和姜，给巧克力带来额定的影响。工人罗杰 马罗拉（Roger Marora）供认:“（这样的日子）尽管并不完美，但它现已十分挨近完美了。”
Mr Persoone, who has received test bars in the post, does not yet agree. He will give the signal to export only when the chocolate meets his standards. “I am putting my name on the bars,” he says. “They have to be good.”
佩索内先生现已收到了一些巧克力条样品，但他还不满足。只有当巧克力契合他的标准时，他才会赞同出口。“我要把我的姓名写在巧克力条里，”他说。“巧克力的质量有必要好。”
