Be the chocolate snack you want to see in the world

It’s often difficult to see the full picture of how food starts and eventually makes it to your plate or pantry. This lack of clarity leads to disparities and problematic supply chains. I started Candid with a goal of building transparency and sustainability into the company DNA. What does this mean in practice?

1. The chocolate industry suffers from labor and environmental abuses. Some estimates report over one million children in West Africa are working in slave-like conditions. We partner with supply chains in Latin America that have been vetted by us and share a commitment to ethical and sustainable sourcing. 
2. Cacao is a great crop to help protect rainforests and reforest degraded areas. It has adapted to thrive in the shade of hardwood trees, meaning you can plant cacao amidst a diverse array of other food-producing trees and native trees to build an ‘agroforestry system’. Not all cacao is grown this way, but we work with supply partners that employ regenerative agroforestry practices. These systems are better for wildlife, plant diversity, and can help farmers move away from the risks of mono-cropping.
3. We are also doing our part to shift packaging away from harmful single-use plastics that choke rivers and oceans, breaking down into microplastics that enter plants, animals, and our own blood stream. We use compostable packaging and hope others will too.
4. We source high-quality, organic cacao and make chocolate snacks with no junk ingredients. What you put in your body helps creates the energy you put out in the world. Eat the snack you want to be.

— Chris Kajander

Nahua (Costa Rica)

Nahua works directly with smallholder farmers and indigenous communities to source fresh cacao beans and manage a post-harvest process that consistently results in award-winning flavor profiles. As Juan Pablo of Nahua tells it, “This region and these farmers have a special relationship with their cocoa crop. In many cases, their grandparents were tending these cacao trees, and so there’s a strong sense of pride and belonging, especially now that these cocoa beans have been recognized for their excellent quality and fine-flavor around the world.”

Nahua’s Cacao Renovation Program has restored over 30,000 damaged and underproductive cacao trees. They pay farmer’s above market prices for cacao and have built a strong relationship of trust and appreciation.