The Cacao Brokers

Emily Stone, the Co-Founder and CEO of Uncommon Cacao Group

Cacao brokers stockpile raw cacao and sell directly to ARTISANAL chocolate makers

Great people

Without a doubt, every cacao broker we have had the privilege of purchasing from are “salt of the earth” great people. These are people we would refer to as hero’s with strong convictions and values… here’s why:

  • Courage- They have routinely made bold decisions to ensure their values are maintained at a high level.

  • Values- They want to see every participant in the supply chain be treated fairly. They respect and value the farmers and co-ops, they want to see true life change and opportunity made for those on the front lines. Their value system continues within their own operations and those who work for with them.

  • Accountable- They are respectful, honest, authentic, and freely open their books; often online for anyone to see.

Working with brokers that only deal in the highest quality cacao helps ensure that this link in the chain can embrace what they stand for and find success in that.

Brokers We Work With

Chocolate Alchemy

John Nanci, the owner and founder of ChocolateAlchemy.com, is widely considered the godfather of artisanal chocolate making. His deep background in chemistry and science, coupled with an insatiable urge to create, led him into this world over 20 years ago. The majority of those in our category owe their early success to him as he was able to find and create solutions to the chocolate making process that used to require millions of dollars in investment.

John is a no-nonsense kind of guy who “suffers no fools” and only stocks the highest quality beans from those who ensure the fairest treatment to the farmers and co-ops.

Meridian Cacao

Meridian strives to foster prosperous farming communities by providing quality-driven farmers and farm groups with meaningful, direct market access. Meridian believes in transparency in all aspects of the supply chain, and does so by partnering with farmers and farm groups who not only foster best practices environmentally and socially but who also redefine those principles. They:

  • Continually search for innovative producers to share in this work.

  • Have direct relationships with the producers; visiting farms at least once a year, communicating often, and only work with those that ensure fair and responsible labor practices, treating all workers with dignity and respect.

  • Ensure fair pricing, high environmental standards, and provide transparency to the entire supply chain.

Uncommon Cacao

Perhaps the most aggressive in their fight for the cacao farmer, Uncommon Cacao has held the coveted “B-Corp” status since 2013; consistently within the top echelons of it.

  • They source from 10,000+ smallholder producers across 15+ countries

  • The company has pioneered a new cacao economy that pays farmers more and is grounded in real partnerships that deliver improved stability and success for all.

  • Their Transparent Trade model has been called best-in-class for transparency on farmgate pricing –they aren’t afraid to publicly disclose the prices paid across their value chain (still the only international cacao trader to do so after 10+ years!).

  • They have partnered with The Climate Collaborative seeking to reverse climate change.

Ultimate Goal: scale the market to enable producer prosperity and provide the entrepreneurial ecosystem for producer success.