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This family favorite has just gotten an organic and fairly traded face-lift from our partners at Equal Exchange! Enjoy the comforting richness of this Organic Hot Cocoa Mix from West Africa and the impressive hand-carving of the Beaded Spoon in this fabulous FairTrade duo. And the recipe can't get much simpler - just mix two tablespoons of cocoa with six ounces of hot water and serve. Sounds enticingly easy!
But why buy fairly traded cocoa mix? Because the corporate cocoa industry still exploits children, with over 2.1 MILLION children laboring as harvesters and growers in West Africa alone. Because, much of the time, cacao farmers are unpaid for their labor, which causes them to sell their own children into illegal child trafficking and slavery in the very industry that is bankrupting them. Because large corporations, in search of ways to create cheaper cocoa-based products, rampantly slash-and-burn the forests at a rate that is now four-fold since 1960, causing 90% of the West African forests to be destroyed. [source: Equal Exchange]
And why spend extra on a hand-carved spoon? Taking 6 hours to hand-carve from sustainably harvested olive wood using only basic tools and skills learned from generations of father-to-son instruction, this beautiful spoon is so much more than its simple appearance. It means that new generations of carvers are encouraged to continue this artwork in their own rural villages, rather than leaving to find urban employment. It means that the artisan group of 80 workers now have stable incomes and a global marketplace for their handiwork, rather than face poverty.
Richly Dark Hot Cocoa AND a sweetly Hand-Carved Heart Spoon? This delectable duo pack is great for gifting too to your favorite teacher, college kid, best friend, pastor, or well, everyone! We have a wide variety of fabulously chocolate-y treats to create a yum-tastic present for your favorite chocoholic!
By purchasing these products, you are empowering the cocoa cooperatives of West Africa and the wood carvers from the rural regions of Kibwezi, Kenya.
*Read allergen information in Ingredients section.
Organic Hot Cocoa Mix + Hand-Carved Beaded Spoon
Cocoa
For more information about fairly traded chocolate and what it means for the farmers and all of us...
Cristina Liberati's job is to support farmers who are working to improve their crops and make their co-ops as stable as possible. She visits farmer cooperatives in Ecuador, Peru, Colombia and the Dominican Republic, coordinating projects funded by the US Agency for International Development. [Equal Exchange] talked with Cristina about what her routine is like on the day-to-day, how a co-op business can be kind of like a family, and how farmers can learn from each other!
Spoon
Kibwezi, Kenya has long been known for its skilled carvers who transform fallen wood into functional works of art. Using only basic hand tools, this skill is passed from father to son and requires years of patient practice to master. Hand-carving was long considered a highly respected profession but has seen a slow decline in recent decades as younger generations move out of rural villages in search of urban jobs. [Source: Acacia Creations]
