Black and Green

I have a research paper due in my chocolate class. The paper is not due for another week two weeks but a slow night at work has helped boost my motivation to start said paper. It was a pretty easy assignment - write two to three pages (double spaced) on a chocolate company of my choice. I chose Black and Green because we all know I have an new found interest in organic, vegetarian, or vegan products now that I am becoming savvy to how things are produced. My paper still needs a few final touches but here is my rough draft for your viewing pleasure. I will also be purchasing Black and Green chocolate for the class to taste so I will be able to post a review of my first taste of organic premium chocolate!



Black and Green, a chocolate company named after the rich dark brown (almost black) color of the chocolate they manufacture and the term “green” being another name for organic, [1] produce organic chocolate for baking and eating alike. They have quickly gone from the dreams of a co-founding couple to a booming fair trade business bringing organic chocolates to the masses.

Black and Green was founded in 1991 by Craig Sams, the founder of Whole Earth – the United Kingdom’s pioneering organic food company [1] and his wife Josephine Fairley, an environment columnist for The London Times. [1] After they tasted a bar of dark 70% chocolate made from organic beans the dream of bringing this delicious treat to the masses became a business plan they put into action. Today they operate with what they refer to as “small team, which simply means that every person is as vital as the next." [1] The company is comprised of offices located in both London and New Jersey as well as many organic farmers in Belize and the Dominican Republic.

Black and Green's Chocolate bars are available commercially for the eco-conscious organic chocolate lovers of the United States. The bars can be purchased at Whole foods, Wild Oats, and Targets nationally. They can also be found in the natural foods sections of most Meijer's. Black and Green's first product was a high-quality, bittersweet dark chocolate bar, made with 70% cocoa solids. [1] As time has passed and their fallowing has grown they have been able to expand their product line to include flavors such as almond, peanut, toffee, milk, white, 70% dark, and 85% dark chocolate as well as a baking bar, free trade cocoa powder, and hot chocolate mix.
Black and Green became a fair trade company (meaning that they pay fair prices to farmers for their ingredients, in Black and Green's case this pertains to the bean of the cacao tree) during 1994 while visiting Belize on vacation where the witnessed the devastation of the local farmers due to the drop in cocoa prices. Craig and Josephine established a relationship with these farmers in Belize and this has become their main source of cocoa beans as well as organic beans sourced from the Dominican Republic.

The beans used to produce Black and Green chocolate bars are primarily Tinitario beans - the highest quality cocoa bean. They are always grown free of any chemicals or pesticides using sustainable and biodiverse farming methods. [1] Once farmers harvest the organic beans they are fermented for five days (an important step that insures the chocolate flavor we love) and then laid to dry in the sun before they are shipped to Black and Green for processing. [1] Once the beans arrive at the factory they are roasted and ground before bourbon vanilla and organic sugar are added. The chocolate is then conched and tempered before it is able to be molded into the bars that are available for purchase.

From the time of the company’s creation through it’s growth and success to its current position in the world ever growing organic market, Black and Green has stayed true to its original dream of producing premium organic chocolate bars for the general population. They have maintained an environmentally conscious outlook when it comes to their ingredients and the farming methods used to produces them. They have also upheld their decision to pay a fair price to their farmers for their product. So during this short but successful beginning that Black and Green have created for themselves they have not only produced a first-class product but have also helped improve the quality of life for many, sustain the environment for generations of chocolate lovers to come, and hopefully inspired others to fallow in their company’s footsteps