Fair Trade Chocolate

I have to admit to an addiction - dark chocolate. My spouse shares this "problem" with me. While I don't eat it in large quantities, I do eat it almost every day. We try to buy only fair trade chocolate. While chocolate is my "guilty pleasure," I don't want to feel guilty about abuse of others while I indulge. You can read about the dark side of chocolate here.

80% dark chocolate is our chocolate of choice, but we often begin our evening treat with a couple of squares of flavoured chocolate. We recently tried maple (too subtle - maple deserves to be more dominant) and  cinnamon (not bad at all). Mint is frequently in our repertoire with raspberry and ginger as other favourites. I love to let the chocolate melt in my mouth - slow eating, time to savour.

We never eat chocolate too close to bedtime, not because of the caffeine content, but because we would have to brush our teeth too close to eating the chocolate, thus washing out the last remnants of this ambrosia far too quickly!

Fair Trade Shelves

Fair Trade Shelves, originally uploaded by susanvg.

Shopping with a conscience - I like to buy fair trade coffee and chocolate. It assuages my guilt at eating these life enhancers that travel such a long distance. At least I know the workers are properly recompensed, and in many cases, the items are also organic. It's hard to walk gently on this earth, both in terms of our environmental footprint and our social footprint. While I live in a country of plenty, so many live from hand to mouth. I stopped in Dix milles villages (Ten Thousand Villages) to look for some espresso coffee. This display of goods was in that store. They also sell a variety of gift items, all made by small co-ops where people are paid a fair wage for what they produce. I have often bought gifts there - a small act to make this world better.

Jan 29/10: Dark Chocolate

Jan 29/10: Dark Chocolate, originally uploaded by susanvg.

Something sweet - but not too sweet - I love dark chocolate. Its flavour is intense, sensuous and satisfying. I feed my addiction with fair trade chocolate - a luxury for sure, but I know that the growers have been fairly treated.

I have read about child workers who are virtual slaves in cocoa plantations. Save the Children, an organization I respect, has reported finding children working in appalling conditions. Children are trafficked to work on large cocoa farms.

Chocolate is a luxury; I prefer to pay more and indulge with a free conscience.

Day 230: Small Chair

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Day 230: Small Chair, originally uploaded by susanvg.

This chair sits very low to the ground. It is quite ingenious, coming apart to carry it easily. I originally got it to sit by the fire, but my spouse likes to sit in it to read. It is actually quite comfortable. I got it some years ago at Ten Thousand Villages, a store which only carries fair trade goods. But what a dilemma - to support fair trade (which usually comes from quite a distance) or to buy local. You can't win in the attempt to walk lightly on the earth.