Chapter 43 ADM Pig Feed

"We're making chocolate, but the chocolate we make is for our own consumption. We don't have a food sales license, so I can't sell it to you. If something goes wrong, I won't be able to take responsibility."

With that said, Carter understood. It wasn't that they didn't want to sell, but they were afraid to.

"Okay, I understand. I have to say, your chocolate smells amazing. I could smell it even while driving over there. When do you plan to get the food sales permit?"

Carter's words were purely polite, as he was already about to leave. However, the surprise came unexpectedly.

"We probably won't apply for a food sales permit. But if you really like it, you can buy our cocoa liquor and cocoa butter. Those we can sell, and then I can give you the recipe I just used, and you can make delicious chocolate at home!"

The production of chocolate desserts isn't complicated, but the challenge lies in extracting cocoa butter from cocoa beans and making cocoa liquor. With these two main ingredients, adding milk, sugar, nuts, or whatever else is easy. The taste might vary, but many American families have a habit of making their own chocolates.

The guy's suggestion wasn't out of place, and he continued, "Our company specializes in raw material processing, so I can't sell you the finished chocolate. But we can sell cocoa liquor and cocoa butter. Sir, are you a tourist from out of town? I haven't seen you in Dickson."

"Yes, I'm heading to Washington. I passed by Dickson and smelled this fragrance, so I came here out of curiosity. Mainly, my sister wants to eat your chocolate."

In the United States, there are numerous food ingredient processing factories like the one in front of him, although the quantity isn't staggering. Carter didn't need to buy two barrels of raw materials and stuff them in his car; he could buy cocoa liquor when he got back to Atlanta. But for the sake of satisfying Melissa, Carter still asked, "Can you tell me the name of your company? I want to buy your products when I get home. If I buy now, my car might not have enough space."

"Of course, thank you for liking our products. Our company is called Archer Daniels Midland, but it may take some time before our cocoa products are available. We're still in... um, the development stage, but it looks promising. People are already coming because they've heard about it! Wait a moment; let me write down the recipe for you."

The guy smiled happily and hurriedly went back inside, returning shortly with a piece of paper. Carter also smiled and thanked him before leaving. Back in the car, seeing Carter empty-handed, Melissa pouted, "Carter! Where's the chocolate?!"

"Don't glare at me; they don't sell it. They're a factory that processes food ingredients, not a chocolate factory. The chocolates they're making now are for the workers using the factory's materials. If they sold them to me, they'd be breaking the law."

Carter shrugged, indicating there was nothing he could do. He couldn't force them to break the law just for two pieces of chocolate.

"But don't worry, I got the name of their company. When we get back home, we can buy their cocoa liquor and then make our own chocolate at home. Here, this is their recipe. We can follow it later. The taste will be the same; it's just a matter of eating it later or earlier."

"Hmph, let me see!"

After listening to Carter's explanation, Melissa's anger subsided. But she snatched the recipe from Carter's hand with a proud hum. As the note passed before his eyes, Carter suddenly noticed the words on it: ADM!

ADM was the abbreviation for Archer Daniels Midland, seemingly also their brand name. When he heard the long company name earlier, Carter had no reaction, but seeing this abbreviation, memories flooded back.

When he was young, his grandfather raised pigs and even fish in the pond. To feed them well, his grandfather bought a lot of feed, including one called "ADM Bean Milk Treasure." According to his grandfather, it had the best effect. The pigs fattened up quickly after eating it, but it was also expensive, like some imported goods.

Imported goods, these are imported goods!

Although he didn't know why this company that deals with pig feed was now involved in cocoa processing, that didn't stop Carter from jotting it down in his notebook. At least this enterprise survived into the future, exported goods, and even received praise from customers (his grandfather), so it had potential!

Melissa received the chocolate recipe she desired, very satisfied; Carter gained a new golden egg, equally happy. Although this company that tampered with pig feed sounded a bit low, it was stable! He wondered if there might be a case of homonymy, but that would be left to see in the future. Besides, Carter was broke now.

In fact, this ADM company wasn't really messing with pig feed. Or rather, pig feed was just a tiny part of their product line; they actually dominated in the field of processing products like corn and soybeans.

Although Carter didn't know who this future ADM was, the unexpected gain was enough to make him pleasantly surprised. The journey of the satisfied siblings continued, and the rest of the journey was much quieter. After leaving Illinois and heading northwest, they soon reached the nearly unknown state of Iowa, then passed through South Dakota, Montana, and a small section of Idaho before entering Washington.

During this process, the most memorable thing for Carter was what he saw and heard at the gas station. The redneck states in the central and southern parts of the United States never turned off their engines when refueling!

They not only kept the engines running but even smoked while refueling. Sometimes, even the gas station attendants smoked. They would casually light up while standing next to the cars being refueled. They truly understood how to control population growth!

The first time Carter saw this was at a rural gas station in Iowa. He was chatting with Melissa while waiting for the car in front to finish refueling. Then he saw the old guy in front get out of his car, casually light a cigarette, and then reach for the gas pump.

After inserting the nozzle into the car, the old guy leaned against the back door, smoking away as if it were the most natural thing to do. Carter even saw some ash falling onto the gas pump, but the old guy didn't seem to care. Carter wondered why he didn't consider what would happen if a spark fell instead of ash?

Seeing it for the first time, Carter thought it was an exception. But later on, through a series of refueling experiences, he found out that these guys were all like that. None of them considered it a big deal to smoke at a gas station, and the attendants didn't bother reminding them; if they didn't smoke along with them, that was already considered good.

From then on, every time Carter refueled, he kept his distance. He waited until these daredevils finished refueling before pulling into the station. After refueling, he would leave immediately.