Our Master Confectioner

Mark Tubman, Master Confectioner

All my working life has been in confectionery. In fact I worked after school at the confectionery factory in my home town in NZ in 1976. I started full time work there on a program learning the fundamentals of confectionery manufacture along with various training courses.

In 1980 I moved to Sydney and joined Darrell Lea. Darrell Lea is unique because it covers almost the entire confectionery spectrum – most of it out of our factory in Kogarah.

In my 30+ year career with Darrell Lea, I worked in every manufacturing area to ensure I made all the products. Committed to the art of chocolate and confectionery making, my studies have included a management diploma, diploma in food science, and various chocolate and confectionery courses. The highlight was a diploma in chocolate and confectionery technology from ZDS Confectionery College in Germany.

During my time with Darrell Lea my role has focused on new product development as well as many other projects as part of getting fresh and quality products to our customers.

Fresh sets Darrell Lea apart

Because we are a vertically integrated company (we control the product from manufacturing to the final customer), we can keep stocks at a low level because we manufacture and transport to our shops very quickly. This is evident in our soft eating liquorice - the secret to keeping it soft, is keeping it fresh. Other products like Marshmallow and Rock Lea Road are always best when fresh and we do our best to minimise stocks and rely on fast tracking through the factory to ensure freshness.

The questions I’m most commonly asked include:

What’s Darrell Lea’s claim to fame?

In 2004, Darrell Lea liquorice was a dessert ingredient at the wedding of Mary Donaldson to Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark.

On a tour of Australia, Lionel Richie bought a bag of Soft Eating Liquorice. He was so impressed, his fan club had to send it to the US at regular intervals.

Luke Mangan incorporates Soft Eating Liquorice into one of his famous desserts.

We have won Gold medals for our chocolates at various events which are too many to mention.

What’s the difference between milk, dark and white chocolate?

The main difference is the proportions of the main ingredients:

Dark Chocolate is high in Cocoa solids which gives the strong chocolate taste and some sugar to sweeten it (really needs some sugar to take the edge off the flavour)

Milk Chocolate has less cocoa solids, milk and sugar to provide the nice milky flavour. Cocoa butter (extracted from cocoa beana) is added to give the nice mouth feel.

White chocolate has no cocoa solids (cocoa solids also have the brown colour) but has cocoa butter, milk and sugar.

What makes Darrell Lea’s confectionery the best in Australia?

We use real chocolate and not compounded chocolate (compounded chocolate has cheaper vegetable fats to substitute cocoa butter, which is quite expensive). Legally speaking, up to 5% replacement fats can be used in real chocolate for the same purpose, but we do not do this either.

For other ingredients, we use the best ingredients so the products are full of flavour – real butter in caramels and peanut brittle gives a great flavour.

Click here to see more interesting questions and answers

I thoroughly enjoy my work at Darrell Lea and hope that you enjoy the delightful confectionery I have helped to develop over the years. 

Tastefully yours,

Mark Tubman
Master Confectioner