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Grenada Chocolate goes Fair Transport!
As I am writing you from INSIDE the factory ofThe Grenada Chocolate Company, one of the very first tree-to-barorganic chocolate cooperatives,I am trying not to get distracted by all the chocolate smells around me - or to drift away too long looking at the mango tree and tropical forest from the open window next to me...
I came to visit Mott Green as he is preparing for his exciting FairTransport event! Mott Green is thefounder of the company and passionate chocolate maker who had a dream to transport his chocolate carbon neutral from the tropics to markets in the US and Europe. By teaming up with the Dutch shipping companywhich issailing the world on wind energy,this dream is becoming reality as we speak, and we will NOW be documenting the FIRST EVER Fair Transport of chocolate
The adventure starts with preparations, my visit here in Grenada, visiting the cocoa plantations and chocolate producers of Grenada, meeting the crew of the sailing ship Tres Hombres and all side stories about chocolate, sustainability and more
For a week we have been waiting in Grenada for the ship to arrive because the winds and current were unfavorable, it has been a very rocky boat on the sea and we were anxiously following their progress, coming from the Dominican Republic.
Thursday the ship has finally arrived: what an exciting day it was indeed! we got up and heard someone had spotted the ship already its a remarkable ship so that was not surprisingly.We have met the crew of the Tres Hombres who are very welcoming, enthusiastic and full of stories about the trip so far which has been very rocky as we have seen on the tracking screen But the spirit is very positive, of course they are real sailors
Have a look at their happiness tasting the first Grenada chocolate; no further comments...
I will gradually post my experiences here, about the cocoa production of Grenada's special organic beans, about the chocolate making, the passion and dedication of the people here and the whole voyage from Grenada to the US and Europe transporting these 5 tons of chocolate bars! the ship will reach final destination in June, follow it online - now we're off to prepare the departure from Grenada to make sure the chocolate is safe on board...
Hi Caroline, Thanks for the update - just went to the websites and read up on how you are keeping the chocolate cool. I corresponded with and met Mott several years ago up in Portland at a chocolate festival. I carried and sold Grenada chocolates (among many others) for several years at the chocolate shop I used to own, pretty much the only certified organic and tree-to-bar chocolate I felt was worth the label. Now to see this new development is quite Grand!
I've sent along the links to some Hawaiian tree/bean-to-bar chocolate makers to see about drumming up interest in having the wonderful Hawaiians creating and shipping chocolate using their double hulled ships to San Fran. Who knows? If I did not get so seasick on ships (landlubber that I am) this adventure sure sounds great! Looking forward to your posts.
Thanks. I do hope that the chocolate arrives in good shape. How are you dealing with hot weather?
I live in the southwest US (Santa Fe, NM) so won't have access to that shipment, but I wish you safe journeys and happy chocolate (how do you stand not eating it yourself? :-)
thanks and I agree; Mott does great work indeed! the bars are heading for the UK market and the European mainland, mostly they arrive in Amsterdam beginning of June. The bars will have a Fair Transport sticker, so you will recognize them in the stores. I follow the ship and will post some updates here on the way, now they are on their way to the Azore Islands (you can actually track the ship through a link on the Grenada chocolate website)
Very Cool Indeed. Mott is a great guy and is doing great work. Adding in the shipping via wind power is great. Where are the bars destined for?
Hi Caroline, Thank you for sharing this wonderful experience! I'm looking forward to the next blog post. Chocolove, Vera