By Theyo Team
“When people think of chocolate the idea of cheap confectionery comes to mind. We know that this type of confectionery is unhealthy and in its ethical and environmental claims at the very least questionable. Yet most of us still continue to purchase. Perhaps simply because we haven’t been shown the alternatives!”
Alastair Gower, TEDxGlasgow
Global warming through chocolate?
Since founding Chocolate Tree in 2005, Alastair and his wife Friederike have been intensively involved with the topic of chocolate. The deeper they got into the topic, the more they realized that it was about much more than just a piece of candy. It's about soils, biodiversity, permaculture, sustainability, fairness and ultimately also climate change and global warming. That's why her enthusiasm for good chocolate soon turned into an almost obsessive engagement with the topic of ethical cocoa cultivation. Ethical in the sense of social-ecological and, above all, climate-friendly.
Chocolate against climate change!
The fact that chocolate can help combat climate change to some extent is still largely unknown. And this despite the fact that there are now studies showing that chocolate is just as harmful to the climate as meat. Of course, it can be argued that most people eat significantly more meat than chocolate. Nevertheless, it should be clear that the decision to buy chocolate from the supermarket is usually also a decision for child labor and deforestation. Pointing out this fact, Alastair quickly gets into the topic and explains how chocolate and cocoa plants can actively contribute to the preservation of biological diversity. In close collaboration with cocoa farmers in Central and South America, Alastair and Friederike advocated for sustainable cocoa cultivation and agroforestry agriculture. In his article, Alastair shows in a short, evocative and pointed way how the right chocolate can combat climate change.
Alastair convinced you? In addition to a convincing appearance, he also produces very convincing chocolates ;-) We are big fans of the pure Chocolate Tree bars, such as the gold winner Peru Piura ...but exciting inclusions like 'Whisky Nibs' or 'Mezcal' also regularly delight our taste buds!
PS: Are you fans of sustainable chocolate? Us too! That's why we offer you chocolatey team events in which we taste chocolate and provide a lot of background knowledge about the topic of fair and sustainable chocolate.
