On our first day here in the Netherlands, we had the privilege of touring local Dutch chocolate business Cacao and Spice, as well as tasting several of their high-quality chocolates. Amsterdam was once the richest city on Earth from the spice trade, and remains the largest port for cacao. Cacao and Spice combines both of these pieces of Dutch history by serving the highest-quality chocolates flavored with spices from around the world.

Cacao and Spice is committed so sustainability through and through. Their owner, Salome, told us how none of their chocolate is labeled Fair Trade because their standards for cacao farmer well being and farm sustainability are far higher. The Fair Trade label is often used the push the line of what is acceptable and what is not. This often leads to deforestation and monoculturalism. These practices consume Earth’s resources rapidly, which harms future generations’ ability to be able to grow the cacao that they will need.

To combat this, Cacao and Spice opts to trade directly with independent cacao growers to ensure the highest quality and best labor practices possible. They are 100% slave labor free, pay farmers far more than Fair Trade wages, and never let cacao trees be cut down and encourage farmers to grow them in the most ecologically diverse conditions possible. In fact, growing cacao in this way leads to deep and complex flavors. I have never tasted milk chocolate with such a strong caramel flavor, nor dark chocolate with fruity and herbal notes from the cacao alone.

Not only is their chocolate the best I have ever tasted, but it is also highly sustainable. By encouraging biodiversity on their cacao farms, trees are less susceptible to disease compared to monocultural crops and need less pesticide treatments in order to thrive, and are less harsh on local ecosystems which preserve other resources for the local communities. Paying farmers over Fair Trade wages also contributes to sustainability by another definition, UN Sustainable Development Goal 8, Decent Work and Economic Growth. By paying farmers well, they are investing in rural communities in Africa and South America who would normally be deprived of this income and investment and be forced to go without basic necessities. By paying them well, these communities can develop and better meet their needs. In fact, the bar pictured specifically invests in female farmers, who tend to give back more to the development of their local communities than men.

Overall, Cacao and Spice is deeply rooted in Dutch history and committed to sustainability on multiple fronts. If only chocolate never melted, I would have been tempted to clean out their whole supply!