With the autumn season coming up, it’s the perfect time to come to Japan! Japan too offers a range of sustainable products and services, and chocolates are no different. We shall be introducing four Fair Trade chocolates that you’d want to get while you are here!
(Image: Shutterstock)
Why is fair trade or fair trade chocolate important?
There are a number of reasons why fair trade is important. Fair Trade does actually bring about better tasting chocolates of higher quality.
Firstly, fair trade ensures that cacao farmers are paid fairly for their production. This translates directly into the effort the farmers put into caring and improving their crops. Bean to Bar chocolates are most familiar with this. By ensuring that cacao farmers are paid fairly, both producers and merchants continuously improve their craft. Instead of profit goals, both parties are driven to perfect the taste of chocolates.
(Image: Shutterstock)
This also affects the production chain directly. Unfair economic agreements could lead to unethical practices. How safe is a chocolate bar we’re eating if unknown chemicals were used in the production? Fair treatment, on the other hand, promotes the use of safe and sustainable practices. There are fair trade certifications that ensure proper manufacturing of chocolates.
Last but not least, fair trade benefits the communities surrounding the cacao plantations. Having a stable economical input into the community helps build the community to be sustainable. Without an economic safety net, the community would find itself vulnerable. One of the biggest concerns is children being exploited as slave labor at plantations. So what’s better than enjoying a bar of chocolate, knowing it was made with smiles and nothing less?
4 Japanese Fair Trade chocolate brands in Japan
People Tree Fair Trade Chocolate
(Image: peopletree.co.jp)
People Tree, which sells a variety of products other than chocolates, has a very strong ethical philosophy. Not only is People Tree insistent on fair trade, it feels strongly in providing ethical items and organic cotton fashion to their customers. This makes sustainable shopping at People Tree easy, because they removed the effort of figuring out whether our purchases are sustainable or not.
Even though there are a wide variety of tastes (and cute designs!) to choose from, People Tree has ensured that all the ingredients are fair trade ingredients. The chocolates are also certified Fair Trade by the World Fair Trade Organization. Furthermore, the chocolates uses 100% cocoa butter, thus the chocolates are colorant-, emulsifier- and preservative-free.
It is a good time to know People Tree’s chocolates, because their chocolates are only limited to the autumn and winter seasons! Precisely because their chocolates are made from 100% cocoa butter, it melts easily. If you are planning to visit Japan from late October onwards, do look out for these chocolates!
VANILLABEANS
(Image: VANILLABEANS)
Founded in 2000, VANILLABEANS has been using internationally certified fair-trade chocolates since 2007. The founder, Katsuhisa Yagi, learnt of the social issues related to cacao, and immediately made the switch to support fair trade. Since then, VANILLABEANS has provided 400 tons of Fair Trade chocolates!
VANILLABEANS is also making a big impact for farmers. They are providing funds that help female farmers who are interested in creating their own cacao farms in Ghana. It is also providing free seedlings and education to growing cocoa beans. They are also go beyond the fields to contribute to the community, including building an integrated school for elementary and junior high students.
(Image: VANILLABEANS)
However, Yagi has not forgotten his roots, and wanted to contribute back to his hometown. For this summer’s specialty, he partnered with a local fruit farmer to promote locavore (local production for local consumption). The farmer too produce fruits through eco-friendly methods, using organic fertilizers made with fish lees. Their methods resonate with VANILLABEANS’ philosophy.
By the way, VANILLABEANS has a cafe in Kanagawa, so be sure to drop by for a fair trade cafe experience.
Minimal Bean to Bar Chocolate
(Image: ideasforgood.jp)
Minimal maintains a very close relationship with its cacao farmers. Being a Bean to Bar brand, Minimal takes an active role by visiting the farms personally, including farms in Vietnam, Bolivia and Columbia. This way, they understand the conditions of the plantations, motivations of the farmers, weather and more.
Furthermore, Minimal focuses on increasing the quality of the chocolates by motivating the farmers. Even though it is fair trade motivated, Minimal also wants to deliver the best to its customers. This means that Minimal looks at the arrangement as a partnership. Increased quality would lead to customer satisfaction, thereby bringing repeat customers for both Minimal and the cacao farmers.
(Image: ideasforgood.jp)
Minimal has also won awards with their chocolates. They have been awarded a gold and two bronzes at the International Chocolate Awards 2016. They have also won Good Design Award 2017, which is the biggest product design award in Japan.
If you are interested in learning more about Minimal, we interviewed the owner in a previous article! You’ll also learn why the owner thinks Fair Trade should be a norm.
Love lotus Bean to Bar specialty
(Image: lovelotus.co.jp)
Love lotus is another Bean to Bar chocolate brand from Japan. The chocolate is the brainchild project of the collaboration with the NPO Lotus, which is a project aiming to deliver smiles and warmth to children living in orphanages. That is another reason why they do not want to make chocolates produced through child exploitation.
On top of fair trade practices, the cacao beans are produced without the use of pesticides or chemical fertilizers. Furthermore, the chocolates are manufactured without the use of dairy products, flavours and white sugar. Instead, love lotus chocolates use brown sugar sourced from Amami Islands within Japan.
(Image: lovelotus.co.jp)
Fair Trade chocolates are highly appreciated as gifts
These four Fair Trade chocolate brands offer perfect gifts, even as souvenirs. Because of Bean to Bar concepts and Fair Trade practices, the chocolates are often high in quality, excel in taste, and socially beneficial (redefines “guilt-free chocolates”!) Furthermore, when you gift these chocolates, you are gifting the recipients the knowledge that these chocolates are doing good in the world. It’ll be as though you are donating to developing communities in their name, and thus making it a worthy gift.
If you are still looking for more sustainable products to buy in Japan, how about our list of five organic cotton brands in Japan to buy fair trade fashion from? Don’t forget your meals too, where these Japanese sustainable restaurants and cafes will wet your appetite!
[Website] VANILLABEANS
[Website] People Tree Homepage
[Website] Minimal Homepage
[Website] love lotus Website
(This interview was originally published on Zenbird Media.)
Additional Resources
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