Fair trade is about stable prices, decent working conditions and the empowerment of farmers and workers around the world. The chocolate industry is undergoing a revolution. There are a number of organisations that aim to give chocolatiers and chocolate lovers a conscience when it comes to sourcing their chocolate. We aim to do the same. 

Unless a chocolate company is 'bean to bar', where they have the facilities to process the beans, they will use chocolate couverture to turn into their amazing works of art. We think it is important to know where this comes from. Some of the more common brands of couverture that chocolatiers use that you may have heard of are Valrhona and Callebaut. Our couverture comes from a company called Original Beans. We're really excited to be working with such an amazing chocolate, not only because of the outstanding taste and the high quality but also because of the values that Original Beans maintain. 

The last piece of chocolate that you ate – do you know where it came from? There is a complex supply chain in getting chocolate from the tree to that final product that you enjoy. Our chocolate is made using cacao sourced directly from the farmers. This avoids paying the middlemen, and means the farmers can be paid more. In turn this allows them to send another child to school and not use them for child labour, which is an issue that has been common in the chocolate industry. Original Beans obligates itself to pay the farmers more than the sixfold of the official fair-trade premium in exchange for high quality and ecological commitment. The farmers protect their environment and make a living from their land.

Original Beans have the same attitude towards chocolate as we do. Good cacao requires hardly any add-on ingredients to become the finest chocolate. Its all about the origin of the chocolate, the climate, the soil, and the way in which it is farmed. This is what the French call 'Terroir'. We believe chocolate deserves to be appreciated like a top wine or a fine coffee. 

Learn more about the Virunga National Park here, where the chocolate originates from. We think it's really special.