SUPER FOOD OF THE GODS...
Health Benefits of Cacao! Why is Cacao Good For You?
Did you know? Did you know that cacao is a super food? Yep. The history of chocolate started in the hot, equatorial South and Central American and Amazon regions. It was considered a divine gift, a source of power, a form of currency, and a health food by the poeples of ancient Mesoamerica. Chocolate, of course is the most famous - and arguably the most pleasing to the taste buds. Cacao beans though (the cacao nibs in our Nibblers are just crushed up beans) are extra-healthy when minimally processed. Combine them with the fruits and nuts that we've paired them with, and now they taste great too! Cacao has been named as one of the top 5 brain health foods, and has in recent years been shown to be a magnificent powerhouse of cognitive enhancement, mood enhancement (thanks in part to the Theobromine in cacao), antioxidants, flavonoids, catechins and many other brain & body-enhancing elements.
Child labor is a major problem in cocoa producing countries. According to a report by the International Labour Organization (ILO), in 2002, more than 109,000 children were working on cocoa farms in Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), some of them in "the worst forms of child labour". The ILO later reported that 200,000 children were working in the cocoa industry in Cote d'Ivoire in 2005. The first allegations that child slavery is used in cocoa production appeared in 1998. The 2005 ILO report failed to fully characterize this problem, but estimated that up to 6% of the 200,000 children involved in cocoa production could be victims of human trafficking or slavery(Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cacao_bean).
Fair Trade. That's why buying fair trade cacao products and fair trade chocolate is important. That's why we use only 100% certified fair trade cacao nibs in our Just Good Chocolate "Nibblers" and are vowing to use fair trade cacao in all of our products on our way to becoming a full-scale fair trade and organic, wind & solar powered bean-bar chocolate factory! Fair Trade insures a livable wage for the families growing food commodities by banning them together to sell through fair trade cooperatives and gain market share while sustaining a fair price for their crops. We need to turn sad into happy. We need to buy fair trade and vote with our dollars. Help support the cause! Need More? Good! For more information on fair trade, visit our sister site Unity-Fair Trade Marketplace to learn How To Make A Change To Fair Trade Products!