USU student takes her talents to Germany for an internship at a chocolate factory
Josie Sorenson, a senior in USU’s food science program, had the opportunity of a lifetime this past summer. Sorensen had the chance to work at Delitzscher Chocolate Factory in Delitzsch, Germany.
Sorensen was born and raised on a farm in Gunnison, which she credits as having sparked her interest in food science.
“My ultimate goal is to deal with hunger issues,” she said. “I got involved with food science because I want to help people learn about food and more sustainable ways of food production.”
Sorensen also mentioned wanting to help with food insecurity on both local and global levels, which landed her where she is.
Silvana Martini is a professor in the food science program at USU, and she is the current director of the Aggie Chocolate Factory.
In 2015, Martini began teaching a course about the science, history and society surrounding chocolate, also known as Chocolate 1010. This general education physical science course is open to all students every fall.
Initially, this course was entirely lectures, but student evaluations prompted the development of a lab for the course.
In the fall of 2018, the chocolate production lab for Martini’s class prompted the opening of the Aggie Chocolate Factory at the Blue Square Apartments.
The mission of the Aggie Chocolate Factory is posted on the wall near the front counter:
“To provide teaching, research, and outreach opportunities to students, faculty, the community, and chocolate producers,” it reads. “We strive to provide exceptional opportunities for all to learn about chocolate and its production with attention to quality, safety, sustainability and efficiency in a professional and collaborative working environment.”
Lauren Davenport, a senior at USU, remembers when the factory opened.
“I think it’s cool that Utah State has a chocolate factory,” said Davenport. “I like that they offer classes and tours about chocolate.”
During the summer, Davenport set up a tour with the chocolate factory. While she didn’t attend, she reported that the experience was positive for those who did.
Along with housing Martini’s course, the chocolate factory is staffed and operated almost entirely by students. Food science students typically work in production, and the cafe portion is open to any interested student.
Sorensen has worked for the factory since opening day. Along with production, Sorensen has worked as a teaching assistant in Martini’s class.
Martini said working with Sorensen has been a very positive experience.
“She’s always very responsive,” said Martini. “She’s always willing to help others. She’s also always available to help, and she’s really good to work with.”
Sorensen credits the Aggie Chocolate Factory as the biggest resource in helping her achieve her internship in Germany.
Sorensen received the internship after Darren Ehlert, the owner of the Delitzscher Chocolate Factory, visited students at the Aggie Chocolate Factory. Ehlert encouraged the staff at the Aggie Chocolate Factory to apply.
“When the internship opportunity came around, I sent the opportunity to her and another student,” Martini said. “She replied right away. She said she would love to do it, and that she’d love to work with chocolate.”
Sorensen, along with two girls from Brigham Young University, were awarded the 10-week internship, which included a small stipend, room and board, and airfare to and from Germany.
During the internship, Sorensen spent eight weeks working product development where they were given tasks like incorporating additives into chocolate.
“They would give us a job like making a truffle or filling chocolate using potato chips, so we would find some way to incorporate potato chips into the chocolate,” she said.
Sorensen also said they experimented with making chocolate healthier by adding things like fiber powder, vegetable powder, hemp seed and nuts to the product.
She also had opportunities to spend one week on both the production floor and in quality management, where she learned how to produce chocolate as well as packaging. Sorensen said the hardest part of these positions was the language barrier.
“I spent a week in packaging,” Sorensen said. “I took some ingredient labels and translated them into 14 different languages. That was hard. Thank heavens for Google Translate.”
Sorensen told USU Today her biggest takeaway from the experience was learning new things about herself.
“We learned how to solve new challenges,” she said in her USU Today interview. “They’d hand us a project, and we had no idea where to begin or what to do, and that’s OK. As a senior, sometimes it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking I should know everything, but I’ve learned it’s okay to not know.”
Sorensen also accredited Martini and the food science department for her success in her internship.
“The food science program is really good. They taught me a lot of the chemistry behind it and I felt really prepared in that way,” she said. “I already had the background knowledge I needed, and the experience to be successful in that internship.”
Sorensen is very passionate about the program. She also said that she loves to tell people about the food science program because not a lot of people know about it.
“I just love it so much, she said. “I love to share all the fun facts about food. It’s pretty great.”
Sorensen is also involved as an ambassador for the College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences. In this position, she has the opportunity to network with incoming students about her enjoyment in the food science program.
She is also a teaching assistant in a food chemistry course and an undergraduate teaching fellow in the Chocolate 1010 course. Additionally, she serves on the Food Science Club council presidency.
Any student interested in getting involved with the Aggie Chocolate Factory can find open positions on Aggie Handshake, or contact Martini at silvana.martini@usu.edu to inquire about openings.
-Jared.Adams@usu.edu