Fair Trade

Thanks to our pal Vicky Lutrell who works with the Stop Trafficking and Reject Slavery, and Kansas Freedom Foundation. She asked if the cocoa products we use are harvested and made with slave labor. While it's hard to imagine for many of us living in the USA, in many places in the world, human trafficking and slavery is a reality of life. These practices can range from slavery on plantations to the global sex trade. All are despicable and evil practices that deny people the most basic of human rights. Unfortunately, much of the worlds cocoa crop is grown in places human rights are trampled on regularly.

One of the ways that we can combat this is by voting with our dollars and our feet, by not buying products that are derived from slave labor or other reprehensible practices. The chocolate and cocoa products we make at Hazel Hill Chocolate are from a US manufacturer named Guttiard. Guttiard was started over 150 years ago during the California gold rush by Frenchman, Etienne Guittard. Guittard is both Fair Trade and Rainforest Alliance certified. This means you can enjoy our fine chocolates, while knowing that busienss and labor practices involved in producing it have been independently certified.