welcome to the home of be happy chocolate

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be happy chocolate was born in 2018 from a desire to create dairy and cane sugar free chocolate that didn't feel like a compromise

 

we are proud to be creating a range of award winning chocolate that is delicious as well as being gluten, dairy and cane sugar-free

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our values

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from the start of be happy we knew that we wanted to do everything to ensure that our little company reflected our values as much as possible, this means:

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ethical ingredients

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we care about every single ingredient we use and only include foods that carry their own weight in terms of bringing nutritional value to our final product.

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sourcing our ingredients ethically (and organically) is essential. we research all of our ingredients and if we can’t get an ingredient ethically (and preferably organically) then we don’t use it. this way we can ensure that the growers get a fair deal, the environment is treated kindly and you get the best product.

 

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our cacao​

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being chocolate makers, the foundation of our product is our cacao.

we import most of our cacao beans, nibs and cacao butter directly from an indigenous-run, farmer-led cooperative in central Peru, who we were connected with through our partnership with the Rainforest Foundation. 

 

these producers grow cacao along the Ene river basin in the Peruvian Amazon. they grow organically under agroforestry systems which help to restore and protect rainforests damaged by logging and coca cultivation.

 

the cooperative offers support and protection to growers enabling indigenous workers to produce high-quality cacao beans and sell them directly for higher prices providing increased financial security and protecting them from buyers who would seek to buy beans at exploitative prices.

 

the rest of our cacao is sourced from trusted ethical cacao importers who maintain long-established relationships with farmers and a commitment to organics and fair trade. 

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our process

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we hand-make all of our chocolate in small batches using a mixture of whole cacao beans and cacao nibs

 

we begin by sorting our cacao beans, to remove anything that shouldn't be there or any beans that don't look quite right, before low roasting them to develop flavour, loosen the husks and reduce moisture.

next we crack and winnow the beans (to remove the outer husk from the nibs) before grinding the nibs in a stone grinder for several days and nights until they become silky smooth cacao liquor.

 

we then combine and temper our cacao liquor with the best organic ingredients in a way that preserves their natural goodness before pouring our bars and allowing them to cool and set.
 

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our packaging

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the final step is to wrap our bars in our beautiful packaging. 

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from the start we have been determined not to use plastic in our packaging.

we hand wrap our bars in packaging that is beautiful whilst also being gentle on the environment. our packaging is home compostable, easily recyclable and printed onto FSC card using vegetable based inks.

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chocolate made with the power of the sun

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our little factory is almost entirely run on sunshine thanks to our solar panels which we installed several years ago. when the sun is hiding away our power is supplied by a local supplier backed by Meridian Energy who produce all of their power from solar and wind. 

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reuse, reduce, recycle

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we don't like waste and we do everything to avoid anything going into landfill. we use paper tape to tape up our boxes and where we can, we reuse any packing material that comes to us or recycle it or (if appropriate) we compost it.

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the husks from our beans go into our cacao husk tea (have you tried it? it's delicious) and any that aren't suitable for tea go on our garden, the fruit trees and roses love them!

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our community

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we love to support our community and regularly support local and national fundraisers. 

we have also been proud sponsors of Martinborough's women's football team since their inception 3 years ago, 'go Marty!'

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one more (big) thing...

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we wanted to use be happy chocolate to raise awareness and to support something else that we care greatly about. just in time for our first birthday (in 2019) we were able to do just that by teaming up with the Rainforest Foundation US. 

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we donate 5% of our profits to the Rainforest Foundation US which means that every year by buying be happy chocolate you help to protect 1376.8 acres of rainforest in Peru, Brazil, Guyana and Panama locking away 286,276.375 metric tonnes of CO2. that's 16,939 kiwi's CO2 emissions locked away...

 

almost 1.5 times the population of South Wairarapa where we live and make our chocolate.

 

in addition these donations include support to help indigenous communities gain official titles for their ancestral lands as well as financial support for those communities to help them create a sustainable life on those lands, such as, for example, the cooperative who supply us cacao beans, nibs and butter.

 

the Amazon and other rainforests are vital in the fight against climate change and studies show that the best way to protect and preserve the rainforests is to keep them in the hands of the indigenous communities who have lived there for generations

 

thank you

for helping preserve and protect the rainforests

 

for more on our partnership with the Rainforest Foundation US you can check out our reasons to be happy page or for more information about the Rainforest Foundation US and what they do click here