I’m very glad some random dude hundreds of years ago forgot to turn off his coffee grinder, and accidentally made the first chocolate as we know it today. As the industry has evolved, it has become much more comparable to coffee, rather than other industries we’ve looked at like pineapples and bananas. The chocolate industry has a high degree of diversity within its products and reaches many different markets. Similar to how many different coffee blends exist that require special production (rather than a pure roast of one bean), many different chocolate products exist with various flavorings and fillings. I thought the lemon and basil white chocolate within a dark chocolate shell was a very interesting idea, albeit not my favorite.

The chocolate supply chain, like any other, faces various challenges. Climate change is a very real challenge that affects almost all industries, including chocolate. Labor can be another challenge, although Sibo has done a very good job of overcoming that hurdle. Rather than exploiting Nicaraguan immigrants for cheap labor and then complaining about why Ticos don’t want to work on coffee plantations, the owners of Sibo are very invested in the local community and actively try to invest in the community, creating a mutually beneficial relationship between the company and its workers. For example, they realized several problems in the community stemmed from long commute times that kept mothers away from their families, so they put a focus on hiring local women to allow them to spend more time with their families.

I don’t think Sibo and Britt have much in common at all. Aside from some supply chain similarities, their business models are very different. Britt is a monopoly, there’s really no getting around that, while Sibo is a smaller company that focuses on niche markets. Britt markets on a massive scale by promoting their product itself, while Sibo promotes the story and history behind their product. That tactic has made their product especially valuable in Japan, where people typically care more about the history behind the product. And while Britt is promoting their image and victimizing themselves that they have a labor issue because Ticos don’t want to work for them, Sibo is investing in their community and making sustainable habits to conserve the culture and environment they have become part of.

If I had to start a business exporting a Costa Rican crop, it would probably be chocolate. First off, it’s a much smaller industry without monopolies like Britt. I got the impression from Sibo that it’s a much more collaborative environment, while Britt seemed very profit-driven. I love companies that actually care about their product and local culture, and that was exactly the impression I got at Sibo. The owners were very knowledgeable and seemed to genuinely enjoy and care about their industry. That is a much more appealing business model to me.