“Enjoy the deep flavours and complexity
of craft chocolate, made using ethically
sourced cacaos from around the globe”
- FOSSA CHOCOLATEOur Commitment
We believe bean-to-bar chocolates tastes better when we work together with partners who share the same values as us in terms of transparency, accountability, and most importantly, sustainability.
One chocolate bar at a time, we aim to incorporate sustainable practices into our bean-to-bar journey.
Ethical Sourcing
In traditional cacao farms, large pieces of forestland are usually cleared to make way for monocultures where only cacao trees are planted in mass. Such style of farming maximises short term profits at the expense of the environment as it encourages deforestation and slash-and-burn practices which in turn leads to soil erosion and loss of biodiversity.
At Fossa Chocolate, it is important to us that our cacao are sourced from producers that engage in agroforestry, where cacao trees are cultivated alongside other native trees and food crops, allowing wildlife to dwell in their natural habitat. This helps to preserve the natural environment and ensures more sustainable productivity for the farmers in the long run which is crucial for the local communities.
Since our incorporation, we are honored to have worked closely with cacao producers and farmers around the world who care about the environment as much as we do. To ensure longevity in our partnership and continual improvement in the farmers’ living and work conditions, we pay them above commodity prices for the cacao that we source. This allows farmers to earn healthy wages which in turn enables them to dedicate more time to cultivating the flavour of cacaos instead of focusing only on yield.
Discover more about the farmers and fermenteries we work with below:
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Ucayali River Cacao Company works with cocoa farmers along the Ucayali River outside of the Peruvian city of Pucallpa. The region has historically been afflicted with unrest from narco-trafficking and the presence of the Shining Path militant group. Ucayali River Cacao in partnership with USAID and Alianza Peru, gave local farmers access to an alternative market besides cocaine.
Working with around 400 smallholder farmers who own one to three hectares of land each, Ucayali River Cacao buys wet cacao at a premium price, empowering farmers with higher income. With the help of Daniel O’Doherty of Cacao Services, they have developed sophisticated fermenting and drying processes, producing beautiful beans that have complex, nuanced flavour without the bitterness and astringency.
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In 2016, we visited our friends, Yuda and Meika from Cokelat nDalem in Yogyakarta, Indonesia where they introduced us to Pak Eddy, a cacao farmer with a reputation of being one of the best cacao farmer in Indonesia.
Pak Eddy started planting cacao back in 1992 when the Government encouraged every family to have their own cacao trees by giving seeds for free. Unfortunately, from 1996 to 1998, cacao beans prices dropped, and as a reaction to that, almost all families replaced cacao trees with other cash crops. Pak Eddy was one of the few who kept his cocoa trees.
What we like about Pak Eddy is his eagerness to learn new things about cacao trees. Besides receiving training from the government, he also conducted many experiments by himself, such as trying to turn his cocoa farm into an organic farm starting last year. This process may take about 1 or 2 years before the farm can become fully organic because the soil in his farm lacks certain minerals that not available in organic fertilizer. The good news is that Pak Eddy has already found a way to supplement the minerals by fermenting cocoa pods. We look forward to supporting Pak Eddy by showcasing his expertly fermented cacao in our chocolate.
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Kokoa Kamili Fermentery was founded by Brian LoBue and Simran Bindra, who have backgrounds in international development throughout eastern and southern Africa. Prior to Kokoa Kamili’s cooperative, a single buyer dominated the area. A sole buyer meant it had the power to set the price for cocoa, and farmers had little alternatives. Historically, farmers in the Kilombero Valley received some of the lowest prices for cocoa in the country. In Kokoa Kamili’s first year alone, Kilombero farmers received the highest prices in Tanzania for their cocoa.
Today, Kokoa Kamili works with nearly 3000 smallholder farmers, most of whom farm between 0.5-2 acres of cocoa. Kokoa Kamili pays a premium to farmers for their wet cocoa, and conducts its own fermentation and drying. By taking over the fermentation and drying process, Kokoa Kamili can produce more consistently higher quality cocoa beans. This method gives farmers a reduced workload, along with greater compensation, and the farmers are paid immediately after the cooperative receives its wet beans.
Kokoa Kamili also distributes cocoa seedlings to farmers in the community. In the past three years, they have aided in the planting of over 140,000 trees.
Kokoa Kamili is situated in the Udzungwa Mountains National Park, an area known for its abundance of bird and mammal wildlife. It is most famous for the eleven different primate species, bird life, and is one of three remaining sites that support Savannah Elephants in a mountainous environment. Current estimates say that 2,000 elephants reside in and around the Udzungwa area.
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Costa Esmeraldas is a family owned and operated 100-hectare cacao farm located in the Esmeraldas province of Ecuador. Rigorous fermentation, drying and grading processes produced the most consistent and beautiful cacao with a distinctive aroma. Our high cacao % preparation highlights the sweet chestnut and floral notes of these Ecuadorian Nacional hybrids varietal beans.
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The cacao was sourced from our friends, Michael and Doris who started a wet bean collection center and fermentation facility in Calinan, Davao City in 2015. Every year during the harvesting season from November to January, wet beans are collected from smallholder farmers to be fermented and dried.
The name of the estate - 'Rehoboth' is named after a well of blessing. Michael and Doris started their operations with the aim to provide locals with opportunities to earn decent income through livelihood projects. Cacao was one of them.
“Mindanao is very rich and fertile - logically no one should be poor. It is due to lack of good education, corruption, opportunities, etc.. We try our best to make a difference.” - Michael
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Kampung Long B got its unique name when the Kampung chief from the original Kampung Long left the village to set up new settlement upstream. In order to differentiate from the original Kampung Long, the new village is named “Long B”.
Cacao are grown pesticide-free in this agroforestry, preserving natural biodiversity. The beans are fermented in used whisky oak barrels for 6 days with 3 turns in between. They are then dried on raised wooden beds in an enclosed greenhouse, allowing control over dry rate. The reward is beans with an intoxicating aroma.
Eco Friendly Packaging
Our chocolate bar packaging and greeting cards are made with paper (containing 50% recycled materials) which is more friendly towards the recycling process.
We print all our paper packaging on demand in order to prevent unnecessary wastage of resources.
Bringing it Forward
Practicing sustainably also involves helping other like-minded organisations with their sustainable efforts.
During our chocolate making process, cacao husks, which are the outer shells of the cacao beans, are separated from the nibs through winnowing and are usually considered a waste product. Our collaboration with local urban farming group, Edible Garden City, allowed the upcycling of these nutrient-rich husks into compost for their agriculture.
Cacao Husks before Processing
Composting in Progress
Ready for Application
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