Given that we still aren’t meeting all together in person, the Action Council has decided that we will not be purchasing, repackaging, and selling fair trade mini chocolate bars for a second year. I hope by next year we will be able to. UUCPA has been making fair trade chocolate available for Halloween since Rev. Amy first started the tradition about 10 years ago. Buying fair-trade chocolate instead of the major brands is a good way to support growers who are not using slave labor on their plantations.
If you want to buy your own fair-trade chocolate, look for the Fair Trade mark on the labels of products in stores, or you can order from Equal Exchange where the church usually orders our chocolate: https://shop.equalexchange.coop/collections/chocolate
For more information on which chocolate companies are combatting child labor and slave labor (last updated for Easter), check out Green America’s scorecard for Chocolate Makers:
https://www.greenamerica.org/sites/default/files/2021-03/Easter%20Scorecard%202020%20USA_FINAL_0.pdf
I have tried the Alter Eco truffles and they are delicious. I also recommend Ocho, a small company not listed here, which is located in Oakland and uses only fair trade chocolate (no child labor) www.ochocandy.com
If you have any questions or comments, please contact actioncouncil@uucpa.org.
Thanks for your support in previous years and we will see you on the patio next year (we hope),
Sally Ahnger, Chocolate Coordinator