Latitude Trade Co. contracts with 1,002 organic certified farmers across the region, 504 of whom are female, and processes the cacao centrally in the village of Bumate, taking care to meticulously sort beans throughout fermentation and drying.

Have you bought your tickets for Real Food Real Stories annual Storyslam yet? A celebration of stories from food changemakers in the Bay and beyond, all proceeds go directly to support our food community! #RFRSlam bit.ly/RFRSlam2021

West Coast chocolate makers, here's an update for you! We currently have cacao in stock from Lachuá and Cahabón from Cacao Verapaz. For African cacaos, we have stock of Semuliki Forest from Uganda and ABOCFA, Ghana. Coming soon - we are planning to restock Oko.

In the 1990s and early 2000s, people from other parts of Colombia starting coming to Tumaco to plant coca farms. It was easy to transport illicit substances via the river systems and out to sea in Tumaco.

One farmer in particular, Gustavo Mindineros, was part of a young group of university-educated cacao farmers who were interested in understanding more about cacao.

We are excited to see this growth and resurgence of native genetic cacaos, not only because the cacao coming out of Cortepaz, Corpoteva, and Bajo Mira are delicious and chocolatey, but also because it represents more stable economic growth and security in the Tumaco region.

Kablon Farms in the Philippines is a family-owed farm that was started by Ernesto Sr. As a single proprietor, they planted many different fruits such as cacao, coconut, coffee, and bananas as primary products.

When Ernesto Pantua took over management of his family’s farm in the 1980s, he was faced with the challenge of low prices for cocoa in the Philippines. read more on IG #philippines #organic #biodynamic #agriculture #farm⁠

Happy International Women's day! Pictured here is Maria Luisa Thiul. She leads the chocolate making endeavors for ADIOESMAC. She joined us in Paris in 2019 when Cahabon beans were recognized in the top 50 Cocoa's of Excellence in the world.

We were THRILLED to see Cacao Hunters rake in the ICA awards as well as Tumaco win 5 awards! Congrats to incredible farmers like Dona Blanca, the teams at Cacao Hunters for their excellent quality control work, and HUGE CONGRATS to the chocolate makers!

Maria Josefa is a leader at Cortepaz in Tumaco! She does all the purchasing management, fermentation management, drying oversight and lot tracking for Cortepaz. We saw a 33% increase in female farmer engagement across our #transparenttrade network from 2018-2019.

We love this photo of Kyakimwa Perusi from Nkisya North, Bundibugyo harvesting a pod! 52% female farmers which means we are working with 504 female farmers in Semuliki Forest, Uganda! #womeninchocolate #womenincacao #uncommonquality #transparenttrade

Mrs. Ansenciona Shol is a long time partner with Maya Mountain Lodge She is in yellow, pictured here with her daughter-in-law. Her cacao grows in the Indian Creek village which is the Zone 1 sourcing area in Southern Toledo, Belize. #womeninchocolate #womenincacao #interdependence

Meet Mrs. Martina Cowo from San Antonio village in Zone 3 of Maya Mountain Lodge She is one of 43 registered female farmers in the MMC farmer network. #womeninchocolate #womenincacao #interdependence #passionforchocolate #singleoriginchocolate #beantobar #craftchocolate

We’re busy working on the 2020 Transparency Report and it’s important for your feedback. We want to report on the metrics that matter most to you!

Cacao is an agricultural product, so some changes are expected but that is where our QC work comes into play. We always love to chat about this with makers and other cacao lovers.

These gorgeous cherelles are from Semuliki Forest and hold the promise of future delicious cacao with a flavor profile that is soft, nostalgic, spicy, and warm.

Cahabon brownies! The flavor profile is well rounded with fruity highlights like orange peel. There is a toasty nuttiness with hint of almond and a classic dutched cocoa flavor of Oreo cookies. What do you taste? #cacao #singleorigin #cahabon #adioesmac

Nibs hold a special place in our hearts as the original 100% cacao. We are offering Semuliki, Lachua, PISA, and ABOCFA as nibs to the North American market. Reach out if you would like to place an order! #cacao #cacaonibs #fresh #singleorigin #organic #nibs

We've all heard of #saltbae but where is #nibbae? We = think that sprinkling nibs atop many foods would enhance the flavor and deliciousness! We hope that cacao from Semuliki, Lachua, or ABOCFA in nib forms can become your go to freshly roasted nib!