~Cocoa powder~ contains arbitrary quantities of fat, and shows accordingly a varying quantity of ash to correspond with the amount of fat expressed. It is therefore necessary to declare the quantity of fat contained in quite a general manner and something in the following grade: skimmed milk cacao under 25 % of fat, cacao freed from oil, fatty and ordinary milk chocolate up to a percentage not exceeding 35.[220] For the same reason it is necessary to convert the established ash contents, possibly of cacao material with 50% of fat, or none at all. It is most to the purpose to convert in the case of dry material which has been freed of fat, as occasionally considerable amounts of moisture remain over from the processes of preparation. Cocoa powder which has been disintegrated without the use of potassium, sodium or magnesia agents (carbonic acid) will therefore show the same ash contents as the corresponding material freed from oil, whilst that of cacao disintegrated by means of the fixed alkalis will be greater. The ash contents of powder freed of oil may nevertheless not exceed 3 %, corresponding to a total 7 %. The mixture of cocoa powder and sugar is not permissible. Chocolates, chocolate fondants and coating mass contain variable quantities of sugar and fat; accordingly no limits can be assigned to the ash contents of these preparations. A unanimity of opinion as to the least possible amount of cacao for the chemical estimation of chocolate has become an urgent necessity. Hereby it should be established that in good chocolate the fatty contents, apart from the sugar,[221] exceed a definite percentage.[222] A minimum percentage of 35% of cacao mass in chocolate destined for export, which must possibly be covered, has been fixed by the council of commerce. As percentage of chocolate in cacao the double quantity of non-fatty cacao material must be taken, on the supposition that raw cacao contains on an average 50% of fat. c) Laws and Enactments as to Trade in Cacao Preparations. So far traffic in cacao has only been brought under legal control in three European countries, namely Belgium, Roumania, and Switzerland. We annex in the following pages a resumé of the legal prescriptions appertaining thereto, as being of especial importance to exporting manufacturers. 1 ~Belgium.~ The ~Belgian~ royal decree of the 18th November 1894 established on the basis of the law for articles of consumption, August 4th 1890, and article 454 to 457, 500 to 503, and 561 of the penal code book runs (according to the “Moniteur Belge” of the 3rd and 4th December, 1894, as follows: Art. 1. It is illegal to sell, expose or hold in possession for sale, or to transmit, any other product as “all cocoa” than the fruit of the cacao tree, raw and prepared by roasting, hulling and grinding with or without addition of spices, and finally moulded into tablets or reduced to powder form.