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Organic, Shade Grown, Fair Trade ChocolateChocolate is one of those foods we think is sinful, but actually turns out to have health benefits...if you choose the right chocolate. This page has links to chocolates that benefit our health, the Earth, and the farmer. Be sure to read "Choosing Healthy Chocolates" to find out all the details about the best chocolates. Many of the descriptions include percentages in reference to the chocolates. This is the percentage of cocoa solids versus sugar. "Dark" chocolates with a higher percentage number contain more chocolate and less sugar.
General 
Love is actually listed on the ingredients list for these exceptional chocolates. Named "best organic chocolate" by Food & Wine magazine and other connoisseurs, Dagoba makes "Premium Hand Crafted Organic Chocolate in uncharted flavor landscapes for the palate." Their mission is "to create the purest, most exquisite chocolate products available by melding ancient principles and modern methods, offer new and exotic products to the chocolate market and most importantly, help create a better world through organic/sustainable agriculture, ethical trading and eco-friendly manufacturing practices." Check their website for some intriguing and hard-to-find organic chocolate products: 73% Chocodrops (chocolate chips), Chocolate-coated Coffee Beans, Cacao Nibs, Chocolate Syrup, Cacao Powder. They offer 59% SemiSweet, 74% Bittersweet, and 87% "eclipse" chocolate bars, plus 59% SemiSweet with such flavors as Raspberries-Rosehips, Lavender-Blueberries, and Mint with a Hint of Rosemary. They also have "single origin" bars that are made with beans from unique ecosystems that are fully described on the website. If you like hot chocolate, try their Xocolatl Hot Chocolate--"We've resurrected the legendary cacao drink of the Aztecs by adding chilies and a hint of cinnamon to our award-winning Hot Chocolate." Labels are printed on recycled paper with vegetable-based ink. "Our facility is 100% powered by renewable energy sources and is dedicated organic - no conventional chocolate ever passes through our machinery." Sweetened with organic evaporated cane juice.
Scharffen Berger is at the top of the gourmet market for fine chocolate. They make only dark chocolate and truffles, in small batches, with high-quality beans, in an artisinal plant, using refurbished equipment from Europe. Though their beans are not certified organic, "consumers wanting organic chocolate can safely buy Scharffen Berger despite its lack of official certification. Consumers rarely realize that approximately 80% of cacao would probably meet organic standards were certification sought...chemicals are usually unaffordable, difficult to transport to small, remote, and scattered locations, and hard to apply to cacao trees...When samples of the shell and bean fragments used by Scharffen Berger underwent chemical analysis, no synthetic residues were found..." And while they have no fair trade certification, they practice fair trade principles. "At the moment we have an understanding with two growers (among eight or nine origins we use) to purchase of a specific quality at a pre-determined price. In every other case we pay significantly more than the stated world price to obtain cacao that meets our standards. We hope over time to work with receptive cooperatives to elevate both the quality of the cacao they produce and the payment they receive." The only drawback for me is that they sweeten their chocolate with refined white sugar "because it brings virtually no inherent flavor to compete with the flavor of the cacao." You can get around this by purchasing their unsweetened cocoa powder and sweetening with whatever sweetener you want. They sell 62% Semisweet, 70% Bittersweet, and 99% Unsweetened chocolate bars of various sizes, sweetened and unsweetened cocoa powder, cacao nibs, and truffles flavored with fresh ingredients such as fresh lemon juice and crushed fresh mint leaves.
These confections can honestly be called chocolates in their whole food form--cacao nibs are sweetened with "just a touch of sugar cane juice" and combined with other whole ingredients to make a sweet treat, right in the Amazon jungle. Bars come mixed with bits of dried pineapple, with macademia nuts, with brazil nuts and coffee, and with coconut and raisins. They don't melt and require no refrigeration. "Yachana Gourmet is an ecologically conscious, socially progressive company designed to purchase agricultural commodities grown in the rain forest, add value to these products in the jungle, and open international markets. Yachana Gourmet produces a unique chocolate product, known as Yachana Jungle Chocolate, for export to the world." (ordering link is way at the bottom of the homepage)
Here's a chocolate that does more for your body than satisfy your taste buds. The very high quality organic cocoa has--among chocolates--an unusually high ORAC rating (a standard method of comparing the level of antioxidants present in food products), giving even more of the benefits of dark chocolate. It's sweetened with xylitol, which helps prevent dental cavities and itself does not excessively elevate blood sugar levels. And it contains a mix of herbs known to help reduce blood sugar levels and curb hunger. It tastes good too (I've tried it). Click here to order.
Organic and vegan chcolate truffles, handmade to order by a pastry chef. Organic truffles are made from Dagoba chocolate, organic raw sugars, nuts, coconut and other organic ingredients. Vegan truffles are made with fine quality chocolate and soy--plus organic sugars, nuts, and coconut--guaranteed to be dairy- and wheat-free. These beatuiful chocolates are also available packaged for wedding and party favors.
Organic fairtrade chocolate bars, cocoa powder and hot chocolate mix. "The bars combine famous Swiss standards in chocolate making with cocoa from three farmer cooperatives in the Dominican Republic and Peru; sugar from four cooperatives in Paraguay and Costa Rica; and milk (in the Milk Chocolate) from a cooperative in the U.S. These high quality bars come in three varieties: Milk Chocolate (38% cocoa); Dark Chocolate with Almonds (55% cocoa) and Very Dark Chocolate (71% cocoa). "
Intense, dark organic chocolate bars imported from England, with wonderful additions like hazelnuts and currants, organic butterscotch, organic crystallized ginger, and more. Also a 70% cocoa bittersweet and a milk chocolate. Sweetened with organic raw cane sugar.
From the first Fair Trade Certified chocolate company in the US..."Art Bars are 100% organic, Fair Trade Certified, exquisite Swiss chocolate bars that feature an art reproduction on a collectible card inside the wrapper. 10% of profits support art education.
Nell, daughter of Paul Newman, says, "Besides my love for chocolate, I was drawn to this project as a way to support sustainable agriculture. Growing the cacao in the ancient way meant that no rainforests would need to be destroyed. We can encourage this method by supporting the farmers economically." The organic cacao comes from small farmers in the Talamanca region on the Atlantic coast of Costa Rica. Some of these farms provide important buffer zones for the La Amistad Biosphere Reserve, a habitat for endangered mammal and bird species. The organic sugar is from Mexico and Paraguay, the organic milk powder is from Horizon Organics® in Colorado, and the organic vanilla is from Madagascar...We source our organic chocolate from producers in Central and South America. Issues surrounding forced labor are primarily centered on cocoa farms in West Africa, principally on the Ivory Coast. Our producers take measures to certify that all of the cocoa they purchase is produced without the use of forced labor. Our group of cooperatives are inspected to verify compliance with organic standards. They require written verification from the inspector that each farm is 'slavery-free'... Paul Newman donates all of the royalty he receives, after taxes, to educational and charitable purposes."
High quality Swiss chocolate bars and cocoa powder made from 100% organic ingredients. Most are sweetened with Rapunzel's Rapadura whole organic evaporated sugar cane juice. Chocolate is purchased through their 'Hand-in-Hand' fair trade program. They have 70% bittersweet bars and semisweet bars with simple flavors.
Though I try to keep the listings to companies based in the USA, I couldn't resist this website from London. It is full of natural and organic chocolates we don't have here and they will ship them all to you. Plus great background articles about chocolate. Many fair trade, organic, and single origin chocolates. "We want you to enjoy the best quality connoisseur chocolate, and to us that means chocolate made with all natural ingredients. We believe the best flavours come from pure ingredients, and you won't find any additives or artificial flavouring in any of our carefully selected products. What's more, we believe chocolate is in essence a healthy food - it is the over use of sugar and fat in 'candy' products that is detrimental. Strong chocolate from good beans has a superior taste that need not hide behind too much sugar, and though the price may be higher, you will not need to eat so much to satisfy your need for chocolate!"
Raw, certified organic cocoa beans, roasted cacao nibs, and a kit for making authentic mole sauce. "We... hope to bring this wonderous food [chocolate] to the world in a healthier and more enjoyable form than how it is normally consumed. Our goal is to create wonderful cocoa-based foods and chocolates with the close-to-nature authenticity that comes when you use the best cacao beans and don't overprocess them. It is our goal to bring to market sustainable, environmentally and socially responsible products that help enrich the lives of everyone from the grower to the consumer. "
A variety of chocolate chips for baking and chocolate confections. Some are "grain-sweetened" with barley malt, others are organic--unfortunately the grain-sweetened chocolates are not organic and the organic chocoaltes are sweetened with organic sugar (not evaporated cane juice). The grain-sweetened chocolate chips taste very good--very chocolately, rather than too sweet. "Our cocoa is grown in Central America and South America by growers who use fair labor practices and provide us with the finest cocoa beans. These are blended, roasted, and stone ground, and cured in REAL vanilla... We use malted barley as a sweetener for a number of reasons. Master chocolatiers prefer the fact malted barley allows the true chocolate taste to dominate, as opposed to sweeteners that become the predominant taste, masking the chocolate. In addition, barley malt is a complex carbohydrate derived from natural grains...Our candies are created in the handmade tradition using old-time candy making techniques. After all, the founder of Sunspire is a fourth generation candy maker." As of this writing, these products are not sold on their website, though they say their on-line store is coming soon. Meanwhile, you can find their products in most natural food stores, and on-line at ShopNatural.
Wait! If you love chocolate, don't pass this by because it's for vegans! It happens to have one of the most extensive selections of organic chocolates on the web. Only drawback is that they don't tell you what the sweetener is. But if you know what you are looking for and it's not sold on the company site--like Green & Black's--you'll probably find it here. Everything from chocolate bars to bite size pieces and gift boxes.
Dairy-free chocolate sweetened with barley malt. Some organic ingredients. Contributes a percentage of their profits to groups that are actively involved in the protection of dolphins and their environment.
Made with organic evaporated cane juice, water, organic cocoa, organic vanilla extract, xanthan gum. Find it at your natural food store or order online from ShopNatural.
Complete instructions on how to roast and process cacao beans into chocolate. "We have a simple but lofty goal. To unearth the esoteric knowledge needed to make great, real, home made chocolate from scratch, and pass that information on to you in a straight forward and approachable way." They sells raw beans, but they are not organic and their recipes call for white sugar. Still, this is the place if you want to try making your own chocolate from raw beans.
Sells "Chocoperfection" milk and dark chocolate bars sweetened with oligofructose (finely ground chicory root). 3 carbs per teaspoon and 3 grams of dietary fiber, so the net carbs are zero and the glycemic index is zero. The label claims it is safe for diabetics and will not cause insulin surges.
Dairy-free chocolate bars sweetened with evaporated cane juice. Purchase from your local natural food store or on-line from ShopNatural.
Chocolate is a divine, celestial drink, the sweat of the stars, the vital seed, divine nectar, the drink of the gods, panacea and universal medicine. --Geronimo Piperni For more quotes like this, sign up for daily delivery of my free Words of Wisdom newsletter.
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