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What is Transparent Trade?
Cacao is a tropical under-story plant that thrives in latitudes close to the equator.
Its distinct flavor and mood enhancing qualities were discovered in ancient times and are cultivated today as a highly profitable commodity. As a globally traded commodity, the cocoa bean can be exploited through farming and/or labor practices.
Transparent Trade offers verifiable and published pricing when sourcing the cocoa bean I purchase. This gives me the ability to see how the bean is grown and from whom, as well as how much is paid to each farmer, co-op, or trader until it reaches me in my small town of Rigby, Idaho.
Why Organic Cocoa Bean?
Earth’s ecosystems are susceptible to disturbances caused by human activities - such as climate change, habitat destruction, and pollution-which pose significant threats to its well-being. I source organic cocoa beans because of the fragility of the ecosystem where cacao is grown and because it is worth investing in sustainable farming practices.
I also appreciate the labor-intensive efforts of growing this crop that must be tended to and harvested by hand. If small farmers can grow this crop and sell it to a dealer that will pay them a good price they can build a better financial future for their families.
We are part of a global economy and so, this means that a cacao farmer in Guatemala having the means to make a living off their land matters as much as a potato farmer here in Idaho being able to do the same.
What is craft chocolate?
If a baker set about making a loaf of bread and started by sourcing their grain, milling it into flour and then using the flour to make the dough you would have the equivalent of what a craft chocolate maker does to make a bar of chocolate. This is the process I go through to make my chocolate:
Process, Qualities, and Notes
The devil is in the details and so it is with chocolate. There is a lot that goes into crafting a chocolate bar and so here are some of the fundamentals of good chocolate.
-Qualities: What makes a good chocolate bar
-Notes: Flavor profiles
Do my handcrafted chocolate bars taste better than grocery store chocolate bars?
"There’s chocolate and then there is chocolate."
- Willy Wonka
When I first learned how to make chocolate, I knew that there would be a steep learning curve. When I read the definition of what a barsmith was, I felt like I had found what I wanted to become.
“There are only great bars; no great chocolate per se. Barsmiths (chocolate bar makers) face the daunting challenge of orchestrating flavor development through genetics, terra, processing genetics, and time (the last always & often patiently among the essential ingredients that bring it all together). Artisans approach this endeavor with a philosophy in mind, setting parameters of what to do, and utilizing techniques in how to do it, to establish a maker’s mark, or personal signature that brands their chocolate. Yet with so much variability – sometimes within the same batch – even the most accomplished concede it can come down to a blend of alchemy, science, & art.”
- The Chocolate Grinder, Marcel Duchamp (1914)
I love the aroma of cocoa bean when I am roasting. I love grinding the bean and turning it into the beautiful sheen of liquid happiness. I love sourcing and tempering with delectable inclusions that pair magically with the freshly ground chocolate. I LOVE taking my chocolate bars to markets and giving samples so I can watch people’s faces light up with happiness. This is what I want my chocolate to do…Light you up from the inside.
A word about heavy metals and contaminants…
Substances that can be harmful and are present in the environment in amounts that are higher than natural levels.
Theobroma is a magnet for heavy metals found in the soil. Looking for a way to genetically modify this and produce crops that do not do this…
Man made contaminants can be minimized by… farming practices.
I look for sources that implement these practices.
As education and understanding reaches these growers, practices will continue to change, and cacao will be improved.
The stats are with eating dark chocolate…
So with my care and your understanding you can still enjoy the indulgence of eating craft dark chocolate!