The Weekly Pick – Chocolate!!!

With Valentine’s Day tomorrow, we thought we’d make chocolate our Pick of the Week. And not just any chocolate, mind you, we’re picking Fair Trade sustainable chocolate.

Like Woody Allen’s movie Sleeper, did we ever think we’d be hearing experts telling us that chocolate was good for us? The benefits of dark chocolate (not made with milk) include:

- Lowers blood pressure
- Contains antioxidants
- Contains stearic acid, a fat that can boost HDL cholesterol (the good kind)
- Has trace amounts of essential elements and vitamins such as potassium, magnesium, B1, B2, D and E
- Contains serotonin, which acts as an anti-depressant, and theobromine and phenylethylamine, which act as stimulants

Now, mind you, we’re talking about dark chocolate, not just any chocolate, and the darker the chocolate – or the higher the percentage of chocolate – the better it is for you. What you have to be careful of is the amount of sugar. Also, you want chocolate with the least amount of milk in it. (Personally, if I eat dark or milk chocolate with sugar in it, I’ll eat the whole box or bar of candy!) So you must watch how much you eat – and the less sugar, the better.

And to make your purchase sustainable, look for Fair Trade or Rainforest Alliance approved chocolates. Not only are environmental stewardship principles used in the growing of the cocoa, workers are paid a fair wage and are treated humanely.

If you want to learn more about chocolate, including vendors, visit our Chocolate Feature Article on the Sustainable Table site.

Now I think I’ll go enjoy some 100% Rainforest Alliance approved dark chocolate from Vintage Plantations in Ecuador. Trust me, this is not for the faint of heart – it’s pure chocolate, nothing added!