About The Region
The Ivory Coast’s tropical climate makes it a perfect place for Theobroma cacao to grow, and farmers there harvest a variety of cash crops, with cocoa and coffee counting for more than half. In fact, seventy percent of the world’s cocoa comes from the Ivory Coast and Ghana. However, the Ivory Coast in particular has a terrible reputation for slave and child labor, with new investigative reports coming out almost yearly. This region is dominated by buyers focused on acquiring commodity, bulk cocoa at the lowest prices possible. Plus, environmental problems, poor health care, and political turmoil make it a harsh place to inhabit. Because of these reasons, many craft makers have not used beans from this area of the world, but through our partnership with ECOOKIM, we’re particularly excited to offer ethical, sustainable chocolate made with beans from the Ivory Coast.
Bean Variety:
Forestero
Bio-Diversity:
74,000 Hectares of Cocoa. Rainforest Alliance Certified
Farmers and Partners:
21,000 cocoa farmers organized through ECOOKIM Fair Trade Cooperative. Sourced by Chocolate Alchemy and certified by Rainforest Alliance.
Fermentation and Drying Process:
Heap Method using banana leaves. Sun-Dried on Wooden Frames
Roast, Grind, and Tasting Notes:
Roasted at 250F for 19 minutes and stone-ground for 72 hours to achieve tasting notes of cinnamon toast, raisin, and cream.
About the ECOOKIM Cooperative
In 2004 several farming co-ops joined together with the intention of achieving more bargaining power for their crops, calling themselves the Enterprise Cooperative Kimbe (ECOOKIM). It’s dedicated to fairly compensating its members for high-quality cocoa beans. ECOOKIM now supports more than 21,000 cacao producers and more than 1,500 cashew and coffee producers. It has built 12 schools in rural areas for children who had limited access to education. Plus, higher premiums allow farmers to receive more for their beans, and the extra income is most often invested back into the communities. ECOOKIM also teaches better farming techniques, harvesting protocols, post-harvest practices, yield rates, and sustainable environmental practices.
Ivory Coast 72% Dark Chocolate
$12.00
Located throughout the Ivory Coast, ECOOKIM is a collection of farming coops that joined together with the intention of achieving more bargaining power for their cacao crops. The Acronym, ECOOKIM, that stands for Enterprise Cooperative Kimbe and was created in 2004 to take back the cacao market. By fairly compensating their farmers for high-quality cacao beans, this region is now known to deliver the fine nuanced flavors that premium craft chocolate makers strive to get their hands on.