New chocolate brand raises the bar
AMSTERDAM - Ananda is slender and darkly seductive, with vital statistics that are almost too perfect to be true. No, we are not talking about Holland’s next top model, but rather a new Dutch brand of chocolate.
Launched this month by Amigos International Responsible Trade & Consultancy, Ananda Chocolate contains a minimum of 70% Ecuadorian cocoa, is organic and 100% ‘PICO’ (produced in the country of origin). This means that not only local farmers but also local designers and packers benefit from the production process.
And if that weren’t enough, Ananda claims to be the first chocolate in the world to be wrapped in a biodegradable inner foil, suitable for garden compost. The bars are available in five flavours: Pure Extase (dark chocolate), Coffee Break (dark chocolate with coffee beans), Mentally Mint (dark chocolate with mint and coffee), Blissful Banana (dark chocolate with chewy banana) and the unusual Bye Bye Sugar! (dark chocolate with banana puree).
“This is probably our most original bar,” says managing director Jeroen Kruft of the latter. “It doesn’t contain any sugar, but it’s still sweet as a result of the banana puree – organic, of course!” We have tried all the flavours - in the name of research, you understand – and this bar does have a slight grittiness that the others don’t, but the banana puree has been used sparingly, allowing the rich, dark chocolate to shine. Check the Amigos International website for purchasing details.
Much less sexy, but no less impressive is Verkade’s line of Fair Trade chocolate. The Dutch chocolate and biscuit giant switched all of its chocolate products to Fair Trade cocoa at the beginning of 2009. In September, Fair Trade chocolate letters, a popular gift at St. Nicholas on December 5, were added to the range.
Verkade requires 1,500 tons of cocoa for the 17 million chocolate products it sells annually. This amounts to approximately 20% of the total world market for Fair Trade cocoa, proving that Fair Trade purchasing on a large scale is possible – and proving that chocolate can be enjoyed with a clean conscience.
