Before the 1950's it was almost a dream to imagine working in the chocolate industry due to the lack of development and know-how in this field.  But it was even harder to even think of working in a chocolate factory, especially in a developing country like Costa Rica.  In an attempt to change the picture, a group of five Costa Rican entrepreneurs set themselves to industrialize the national production of cocoa beans in Costa Rica, and founded what is today The Costa Rican Cocoa Products on November 3, 1952.

The company started as a cocoa processing plant with only 18 employees and 150,000 colones of working capital.  During this time, Ernesto Ruiz Avilés that was one of the founders owned only 20% of the company.  Then in 1966 due to hardships in the cocoa plantations, the founders were forced to consider a joint venture with the Pet Milk, Inc., of Louis Missouri that was widely known for their Whitman's chocolates.  The founders sold 60% of the company to them.  Six years later, on December 12, after tremendous efforts and a period of six months of negotiations, the Ruiz family acquired full ownership.  By that time, around 1975, Ernesto Ruiz Avilés, head of the Ruiz family, traveled to Europe to investigate about the different methods of making chocolate.  Once in Italy, he got in contact with the Buitoni Perugina Candy Co., and signed and agreement that would license the Costa Rican Cocoa Products to produce and market the Perugina candy in Costa Rica.

From then on the Ruiz family has strived to diversify their products and activities in order to develop and solidify their position in the Chocolate confectionery industry.  Since the company began there has been a clear vision of the future defining where it wants to go and what its mission is.