The first question in our blog series of ‘questions for chocolatemakers’ was by Paul’s mother, a fan of milkchocolate interested in the ethical side of chocolate and cacao. We are very interested to hear your opinions and questions. Do you also have a question for the chocolate makers? Contact us!
This blog is also available in dutch.
We’ve send this question to the makers of the chocolates we sell. And received a lot of answers.
What do you know about the farmers who produce the cacao for your chocolate?
The answer by Mesjokke:
“First of all, let me tell you that we do not have the full picture to answer this question yet. Better said, our primary goal is to obtain as much information on our products as possible. The best way to accomplish this, is by visiting the farms ourselves. Unfortunately, our company is not mature enough yet, as our chocolate only exists since March 2015, to have enough means (time, money) for such a trip. Nevertheless, in our plans for next year, a visit to the plantations of Cacao Bisiesto is included. After this trip, we can offer more information about the cocoa beans we use for our D.A.R.C. Angel. For now, the information we have is second hand, but nevertheless reliable (as we are in direct contact with the founder, we have regular contact with him and we established a good and close relationship with him).
The cocoa beans for our D.A.R.C. Angel are bought directly from Cacao Bisiesto. The plantations are situated in La Dalia, in the Matagalpa region of Nicaragua. The company was founded on the 29th of February, which is only possible during a ‘año bisiesto’ (Spanish for leap year). The founders José Enrique Herrera and Giff Laube work closely with local farmers to improve the quality of the cocoa. The fermentation and drying process is taken very seriously and is seen as one integrated process. Due to this, the cocoa possesses a subtle bitterness and acidity. Furthermore, due to this close relationship, the farmers are able to attain a price higher than world market prices and are helped by improving their farming practices. As a result, the environment is respected during the whole production process. The shipping and handling is fully arranged by either Cacao Bisiesto or us, so that there is no middleman who has to be compensated. In this way, we can make sure that the whole sum paid goes directly to Cacao Bisiesto.
For our Mystery Dark, the origin of the cocoa bean is unknown. With the help of hints on our facebook page, www.facebook.com/
Do you want to know the story behind the cocoa of the first edition Mystery Dark chocolate? Or do you want to get more information about the other products we use, for instance sugar, lecithin, etc., please go to http://www.choxplore.nl/en/
