The Asháninka people and cacao

Our ceremonial cacao comes from a coorperative of the Asháninka people in Satipo, Peru. They are one of the largest Indigenous groups of the Amazon, and have been living for countless generations in the rainforests of central Peru and across the border into Brazil. Their way of life is union with the forest, which they see as a living being. Not as property, but as an equal. Every tree, river and creature forms part of an interconnected web of life to which they all belong.

Cacao has grown in Asháninka lands for centuries. The cacao trees thrive alongside native fruits and medicinal plants, cared for in balance with the rhythms of nature. For the Asháninka, cacao has never been merely food or trade: it is medicine, a heart-opening plant used in moments of connection, prayer and renewal. It is shared during community gatherings, to strengthen unity and gratitude, and in some families, it has been offered to the forest spirits as a gesture of harmony and respect. They make ceremonial beverages from the fermented pulp, and medicine from the bark of the cacao tree. For generations their families have farmed cacao using agro-forestry methods that supports biodiversity, soil health, shade and nature.

〜

The Asháninka people have lived through tremendous, deep suffering. When the europeans arrived, they experiences horrific massacres, violence and were forced to give up their beliefs and convert to Christianity. Many were enslaved to work on rubber plantations, families and homes were torn apart, villages were destroyed, and countless lives were lost. In recent decades the Asháninka people have faced enormous social and environmental pressure: dispossession of land, illegal logging, deforestation, extraction industries, climate change impacts and poverty.

After years of hardship, displacement and deforestation, cacao became both a livelihood and a symbol of healing, a way to restore what was broken, reconnect with ancestral roots, and rebuild communities from the heart outward.

"Cacao is the tree of life, because it has allowed us to rebuild our lives and communities when we had lost everything.” - Asháninka elder.

Cacao cooperatives began forming when small farmers realized they had little power on their own. For decades, middlemen and large companies set unfair prices, leaving growers in poverty. By joining together, farmers could share resources, improve quality, and demand fair pay and better work conditions. These cooperatives also became a way to protect local traditions, promote organic farming, and keep more of the value within their own communities. When you support cacao grown through these cooperatives, you help shift power back to the hands of those who nurture the land, where it truly belongs.

〜

The Cocoa Industry: Shadows Behind the scenes

Globally, the cocoa industry is not only about sweet chocolate, because it is built on persistent structural issues. Environmental harms are very large: deforestation, biodiversity loss, loss of wildlife, erosion, soil degradation, and loss of forest cover continue where cacao plantations expand unsustainably. 

Human rights issues are serious: child labour, hazardous working conditions, opaque supply chains and insufficient traceability are all documented challenges. Many farmers live below a living income, facing unpredictable market prices, limited access to infrastructure, training, support and fair terms. 

In short: without careful sourcing, what appears as an chocolate bar or cocoa drink may support unfair labour, ecological damage and cultural erosion.

Why It Matters and What We Offer

When you choose cacao that is intentionally and ethically sourced from Indigenous cooperatives working in harmony with the forest, you’re making a conscious choice. One that values culture over commodification, fairness over exploitation, and the health of ecosystems over their destruction.

Our ceremonial cacao is grown in the living amazonian rainforests by Asháninka families who cultivate in rhythm with the land, not against it. Each tree belongs to a web of biodiversity; each bean is tended with patience, care, and respect. Through traditional agroforestry practices that protect rainforest, wildlife, and soil, the Asháninka nurture both their communities and the earth itself. This cacao is organically grown, certified Fairtrade and full of integrity, harvested and prepared with the same attention and reverence that has guided generations before. To drink it is to take part in a living tradition that honors place, people, and purpose.

By choosing our ceremonial cacao, you support ongoing traditions of ecological care, resilience, and cultural continuity. You help make it possible for the Asháninka to continue rebuilding their communities, schools, homes, and livelihoods.

Choose cacao that remembers and honors where it comes from.
Choose cacao that carries guardianship, craft, and connection.