Why Choose Tsatsayaku Cacao?
5th June is World Environment Day – the perfect time to slow down and reflect on how we can take better care of our beautiful yet fragile planet.
In this blog, we’d like to share with you some of the amazing and surprising environmental benefits of our Tsatsayaku cacao, which we’ve been sourcing directly from the Ecuadorian Amazon since 2019.
We also want to highlight the various social benefits of our ethically-sourced cacao and how this 100% natural superfood is feeding and supporting a whole community.
Meet the Tsatsayaku Association
Established in 2012, the Tsatsayaku Association is an organisation of 180 small-scale farmers from 13 indigenous Kichwa and Mestizo communities in the Ecuadorian Amazon. The group aims to produce high-quality ancestral cacao, whilst providing a fair price to its members, and conserving the native rainforest habitat.
An indigenous natural growing system
Tsatsayaku farmers grow their cacao in ‘chakras’ – biodiverse agroforestry systems that mimic the forest’s natural composition and processes. The chakras are planted with a wide variety of crops including cacao, yucca, banana and corn, as well as things like timber, fruit and medicinal plants, creating a naturally abundant and highly productive ecosystem. The chakras are 100% natural, self-sustaining, which contributes to the health of the soil, air and water throughout the region, and completely avoids the need for harmful chemicals, pesticides and fertilisers.
Creating environmental sustainability
This indigenous way of farming not only creates food security for the farmers and their families, by enabling them to be completely self-sufficient, but provides an extended rainforest habitat for flora and fauna, conserves precious native ecosystems, revitalises the soil, air and water, and increases local reforestation.
Supporting community farming
In addition to these fantastic environmental benefits, the production of Tsatsayaku cacao supports community farming and helps create sustainable livelihoods for the producers. By joining together and working cooperatively as part of the Association, growers gain access to international markets, which means they get a fair price for their cacao.
After wild harvesting their raw cacao by hand, the producers take it from their chakras to the Tsatsayaku Association where it is fermented, dried, roasted and transformed into the delicious cacao liquor we know and love at Ritual Cacao.
Around 500 additional families are thought to indirectly benefit from the Tsatsayaku Association’s work by providing transport, farming supplies and hospitality along the cacao route.
Preserving local culture and tradition
By supporting Tsatsayaku cacao, we can help the ancestral knowledge of this natural, indigenous and environmentally-friendly way of farming continue to be passed on from generation to generation – keeping alive the cultural traditions of the Kichwa and Mestizo communities, and preserving the wisdom that has allowed them to live in the Amazonian rainforest for thousands of years.
To summarise, our Tsatsayaku cacao is:
· Organically grown: without the use of any chemicals, pesticides or fertilisers
· Wild harvested: gathered directly from its native habitat in the Ecuadorian Amazon
· Non-GMO: 100% natural without any genetic modification or engineering
· Fair Trade: indigenous producers receive a fair price for their cacao
· Ceremonial grade: suitable for ceremonies, rituals and shamanic journeys
Want to support indigenous ecosystems this World Environment Day? Then check out the Tsatsayaku cacao available in our shop. It’s also Father’s Day on 19 June – so why not treat your dad to a unique and delicious gift that benefits the environment: our taster pack is ideal for those who are new to cacao and we also offer gift cards at the value of your choice.
