The Chocolate Fudge Cafe

These days – thanks to the combination of concerns about the environmental issues of transporting foodstuffs around the globe, coupled with the harsh economic climate, there is a tendency for people to choose growing and eating their own locally grown produce. Does this also apply, you may ask, to the cacao plant?

Of course, chocolate lovers would  probably delight in having a plant which provides produce which can be made into cocoa and chocolate products. In terms of the natural habitat for the cacao tree, it grows in a tropical climate such as South America or Central America  and also in Africa and Asia. As a rule, this evergreen plant prefers temperatures around 68 degrees Fahrenheit. However, if you fancy growing your own cacao plant in a more arid country, why not try growing one in your greenhouse?

The cacao plant is not especially hardy so it is worth taking the time to learn how to take care of the plant. Here are a few tips as to how to get going.

The easiest way to get started is to buy a baby cacao plant from a nursery. If you are really hard core and want to do everything yourself, you could take a stem cutting (the cutting should have a few leaves on it and one or two buds) and, once you`ve dipped it in rooting hormone, pot it into a well-drained pot, keep the soil moist and covered with a plastic bag. Keep the plant warm and in a shaded space. The plant can take more light, the bigger it grows.

When you have your baby cacao plant, by whatever means, it needs to be planted in a shaded place. It has been said that, because cacao plants need shade, they can be planted in rainforests which has the environmental advantage of protecting these important habitats. For home use, make sure the hole for your plant is three times the diameter of the root ball and three times the height.

Expert gardening sites recommend that the plant is watered immediately with a slow soaking and that mulch is spread 3 – 6 inches thick  around the tree (about half a foot away from the trunk). The plant should then be watered according to the soil type but remember the cacao grows naturally in tropical climes.

There is a debate as to whether to use fertilizers and chemicals on the plant. Some say yes, some say no. If you choose to apply fertilizer, follow the direction on the pack. The tree should be pruned once it reaches a couple of feet in height. It has been recommended to allow four branches to develop and to prune away others.

In due course, you should begin to see the produce of the tree! Of course, for life’s other little treats, it may be easier to pop to the shop to buy your goodies.  And for coffee lovers, rather than going to the trouble of buying a coffee plant, it may be better to buy your coffee beans online: http://www.caffesociety.co.uk/coffee-ingredients-sundries/coffee/fresh-coffee-beans.

By now most of us know the benefits of eating dark chocolate…after all, it’s been all over the mainstream news lately…but,  have you ever eaten raw cacao nibs, the natural source for chocolate?  They are quite good for you, and likely better for you than eating a chocolate bar.  Since it is the natural fruit (bean) from which the processed chocolate is made from, it makes sense that eating it in its original form would give you more of the benefits being touted by the mainstream media.  These studies and reports are most likely funded by big chocolate manufacturers who have an interest in advertising the health benefits of dark chocolate so they can sell more of their bars which are taking up quite a bit of space on grocery shelves now.  Many health practitioners of all modalities are recommending a little bit of chocolate every day for their patients.  The next time you’re in a health food store, ask if you can try a sample of the raw cacao nibs.  The health benefits per gram are much more pronounced minus the sugar, additives and fillers used in some dark chocolate bars.  Here is the nutritional information for raw cacao nibs from David Wolfe’s book “Superfoods”:

Raw Cacao Nibs – Nutritional Information

Protein      15.4 grams

Carbohydrate (Total)  29.4 grams

Fat (Total)     48.0 grams

Moisture     3.9 grams

Ash     3.3 grams

Calories      611

Calories from Fat     432

Saturated Fat     27.6 grams

Trans Fat      0.25 grams

Dietary Fiber     22.3 grams

Sugars     53 mg

Calcium     58 mg

Iron     202 mg

Magnesium     342 mg

Vitamin A     20 (IU)

Vitamin C     44 mg

Raw Cacao has a host of other beneficial constituents that are bio-available.  You can visit www.sacredchocolate.com for more information.

Celebrating 25

Years in

Sustainability

     
New York City, May 16, 2012

The Rainforest Alliance will commemorate 25 years of accomplishments on Wednesday, May 16, 2012 at its annual gala dinner and awards ceremony in New York City.  Over the last 25 years, we have conserved more than 170 millions acres of forest and farmlands in nearly 80 countries, helped more than 3.5 million producers and their families, engaged with more than 130,000 agriculture, forestry and tourism operations and introduced countless consumers to Rainforest Alliance Certified™ products.

Join us for this milestone celebration, as we gather among champions in the areas of sustainable agriculture, forestry and tourism.  The  evening’s program will include a brief presentation of the Sustainable  Standard-Setter and Lifetime Achievement awards, live entertainment, a  silent auction and a formal dinner.  Proceeds from the gala benefit the comprehensive  conservation initiatives of the Rainforest Alliance that enable us to  ensure sustainable livelihoods and conserve biodiversity.

It has been said that the beginnings of chocolate production,which is now a food product that delights and teases the taste buds of adults and children alike the world over, originated in Mesoamerica. It is said to date back to 1900 BC and was used in Maya and Aztec ceremonies and events. In fact, sometimes during the Aztec civilization, cacao beans were paid as a sort of tax by those who were conquered. Once the beans travelled to Europe, however, the form of the food product changed. Chocolate had additional ingredients added – refined sugar and also milk. In the 1800s, the Cadbury chocolate producers found a way to emulsify the process of making chocolate to turn it into a solid form, which then became the product that we would recognise today – the chocolate bar. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, things changed further to refine the making of chocolate goodies including the squeezing out of cocoa butter to create hard chocolate. And of course, once the processes relating to chocolate production were mechanised, the levels of output increased considerably and chocolate was made available to a much wider consumer base. These days, West Africa produces most of the cocoa used in the globe, especially Cote d`Ivoire. Published statistics suggest that this continent is responsible for the production of nearly two thirds of cocoa.

These days, chocolate consumption is – as you no doubt are aware – very popular. However, although it is a much loved food stuff, not many of us realize the conditions within which it is produced. There have been arguments that those who produce cocoa (and coffee for that matter too) can be exploited and live in poverty. Some commentators have described these labourers as modern day slaves. Sadly, many children are included in this definition. Reports by some journalists in 2000 said that children, aged between 12 and 16 years old, were enslaved and sold to plantation owners. The work is hard and the hours are long – in addition, the cocoa bean farming process uses dangerous machinery and equipment such as machetes and pesticide. In response to awareness of this problem, consumers have an option to opt out of supporting these practices. The Fair Trade organization will certify chocolate (or coffee and other products) with its seal of approval when the products comply with their standards. For instance, these criteria relate to the wages paid to labourers, their working conditions and health and safety procedures and the use of environmentally sustainable methods. If you make the Fair Trade choice, this means that when you bite on a certified Fair Trade bar of chocolate or put Fair Trade coffee in bean to cup coffee machines you can enjoy the product even more.

WFTD is the largest Fair Trade event of the year in N. America, and events take place May 6-20 in 2012. Around 100,000 people attend hundreds of celebrations to promote Fair Trade and campaign for trade justice together with farmers & artisans. WFTD itself falls on May 12.

The Chocolate Fudge Cafe is a proud to support World Fair Trade Day, an international celebration of Fair Trade. This year’s events will be taking place in over 80 countries worldwide. Help us invite friends, coworkers and neighbors to build awareness of Fair Trade and empower vulnerable producers! Fair Trade seeks dignity and hope for farmers and artisans who produce the items we consume and enjoy, a better future for our planet, and tastier, higher quality products for you.

Across N. America, advocates are inspiring around 100,000 people to participate in Fair Trade events from May 6-20. Please join us in supporting World Fair Trade Day and celebrating the “Best in Fair Trade” Award winners. With over 1,000,000 producers around the world already benefiting from Fair Trade, it’s time to raise our voices and vote with our dollars until all trade is fair! This year, individuals as well as organizations will host hundreds of events to celebrate Fair Trade. Visit www.FTRN.org
to learn more and to get involved.

We invite you to host World Fair Trade Day events during May 6-20 - including Fair Trade festivals, fashion shows, speeches, food and drink tastings, film showings, sports games, neighborhood crawls, spa nights and concerts and much more – to promote Fair Trade and campaign for trade justice together with farmers and artisans around the world.

Download the free World Fair Trade Day Activities Guide for tips, ideas, and resources!  You can also order WFTD promotional stickers and postcards, and Fair Trade products – free of charge – at www.ftrn.org.

1/2 lb. box Rich Rainforest Dark Chocolate Fudge with walnuts

Every year people look for something thoughtful and delicious to give to our sweeties for Valentine’s Day.  Have you thought of this organic, gourmet fudge with walnuts?  It is gluten-free, dairy-free and made with 70% dark chocolate from Ecuadorian rainforest farms, AND the packaging is home-compostable!

Earth’s Sweet Pleasures fudge is made with only 7 all-natural, organic ingredients.  It’s made the old-fashioned way but with 25% less fat and sugar.  There is no gluten and no dairy.  Please call  their toll-free number to order for shipment anywhere in the continental United States: 1-888-999-3191 or order on the website: www.earthssweetpleasures.com.  If you have any questions about shipping charges, please call their toll-free line.  They ship USPS priority mail and can usually find the best price for your shipping area by using USPS flat rate shipping boxes.

   Cacao beans and pod

Processed chocolate “coins”

Not only is chocolate a sweet treat for the stomach, new  research suggests that cocoa can help protect against intestinal diseases like  colon cancer.

In what they claim is the first study of its kind in  relation to intestinal pathologies, a research team out of Spain has concluded  that cocoa can act as a defense system for the body by interrupting the  cell-signaling pathways involved in cell proliferation, a process which results  in the formation of tumors.

Their study also found that a cocoa-rich diet can help  increase a natural process known as apoptosis or cell death, in which the body  eliminates old, unhealthy cells, to make way for new ones — a “chemoprevention  mechanism” that helps ward off cancer advancement.

For eight weeks, researchers fed rats a cocoa-rich diet — 12 percent — and then induced the effects of cancer.

For the rest of the article:  Cocoa Prevents Colon Cancer

A message from Tom Newhaus, President of Project Hope and Fairness, founded to deliver tools to cocoa farmers that will make their occupation more sustainable.

I have been visiting Broguhe every year since 2004 and I have promised the villagers since 2006 that we would put a good roof on the room, provide electricity from a neighboring pole, and add a few electric sewing machines. The women of Broguhe love to sew and reap good money selling their products at a neighboring market. The solution to poverty in Africa and everywhere else in the developing world is cottage industry.

I’m raising money to electrify a sewing room in Broguhe, Cote d’Ivoire.  This is a village that I visit every summer.  One way to enhance sustainability of the cocoa farmer is to aid in diversification such as building cottage industry.

See www.sweetearthchocolates.blogspot.com (pull down to Pictures of African Cocoa Farmers, then to Broguhe).  I need to reach $2500 in order to electrify, put on a metal roof, and purchase two electric sewing machines.  See www.projecthopeandfairness.org  (Donate Box–first item) for a picture of the gift card you can buy to help us with the sewing room.