Eat Your Regenerative Chocolate!

The Chocolate Edition (50th) of the Negative Foods Newsletter

Apr 01, 2022

As we approach the one-year anniversary of this weekly newsletter, what editions did you find most interesting / helpful / vexing / provocative? What have we not yet covered in terms of topics / brands / people / questions? 🙏 🙏 ❤️

I’ve never liked chocolate. 💩💩💩 🤪

My kids question why they should be expected to try new foods if I won’t “try” chocolate. So for the past few months I’ve been trying to “learn” chocolate, like when I “learned” scotch at The Landmark Tavern with Joe Rob a million years ago.

I’m not yet loving the taste of chocolate, but I understand that chocolate - like wine and beer and coffee - is fundamental to many people (including my wife).

Chocolate emits a lot of carbon. The chocolate supply chain is under immense pressure from climate change and is troubled by human rights abuses. The status quo ain’t sustainable.

Since we’ll need to transition our chocolate supply chains toward a regenerative future, let’s consider three terrific chocolate organizations trying to solve these problems.

Alter Eco. The Alter Eco Foundation was launched in 2020 and “provides funding, training, and other resources needed to help our farmers transition from monoculture to a form of regenerative agriculture called dynamic agroforestry.” The goals of the Alter Eco Foundation:

Build industry and consumer awareness of soil regeneration, carbon sequestration, farmer livelihood, and the chocolate supply chain
Provide necessary resources to help all farmers in our supply chain transition from monoculture to dynamic agroforestry
Make Alter Eco’s proven climate positive model available to the entire cacao industry

Alter Eco is Certified Climate Neutral, which it achieves by (a) measuring its carbon footprint, (b) reducing its emissions (primarily through improved agricultural practices and logistics efficiency) and (c) offsetting remaining emissions by protecting and planting trees, and transitioning its farms to dynamic agroforestry.

GoodSam Foods. I had a great conversation a few weeks ago with GoodSam’s CEO, serial entrepreneur Heather Terry. GoodSam creates market opportunities for small farms doing things the right way. Heather says “Small holder farmers have been doing regenerative agriculture around the world. They may not call it that but the principles are there. It’s us here in the US that are so addicted to mono-cropping and where regenerative agriculture could be of help and a real change.” My family enjoyed GoodSam’s products, and I hope you do too!

Dr Bronner’s. I love everything about the zaniness of Dr. Bronners and its commitment to the environment. I don’t shave every day, but when I do shave, it’s with Dr. Bronner’s Shaving Soap.

Dr. Bronner’s sells regenerative chocolate, which, as Dr. Bronner’s VP of Marketing Christina Volgyesi explained to me, benefits from a “vertically integrated, regenerative organic cocoa supply chain.” From Dr. Bronner’s web site:

Regenerative organic agriculture goes beyond organic practices and aims to improve soil fertility by increasing the humus content of the soil, thus increasing yields and improving the resilience of the soil, as well as its ability to sequester atmospheric carbon. Serendipalm’s farmers use regenerative organic practices such as mulching, cover cropping and mixed cropping. Since 2020, Serendipalm has been certified to the Regenerative Organic Certified™ (ROC™) standard overseen by the Regenerative Organic Alliance. In addition to regenerative organic agriculture, the ROC standard also ensures fair conditions along the value chain, and safeguards animal welfare.

When these awesome brands capture more and more market share from Big Chocolate, then we’ll see Big Chocolate changing their ways and converting their supply chains to become more regenerative. To accelerate that shift in market share, we need consumers to understand the carbon impact of their food choices, and so I’m hopeful we’ll see more carbon labeling from upstart brands with regenerative supply chains.

In the meantime, it is your patriotic duty to support these brands! Eat regenerative chocolate!

For Your Consideration:

How Regenerative Agriculture Can Mitigate Drought

Minting a greener future

An NFT Collection Built for Agriculture; Introducing The Modern Acre Co-op

Water Tech is Climate Tech. Here’s why

Braga Fresh to trial regeneratively grown veg

A Regenerative Grazing Revolution Is Taking Root in the Mid-Atlantic

Sodexo looks to support regenerative farming practices with latest pilot

What Is Regenerative Grape Growing? Plus 3 Sonoma Wines to Try

Transform Your Yard, Save the Planet

Berkeley’s Umaro Foods Secures $3M for Seaweed Bacon