In search of the perfect cacao bean

Piebra Belize

Piebra is a fifty-minute drive from Punta Gorda. As you turn off the Southern Highway onto Barranco Road you will pass several small villages. Most of the people here are indigenous Q’eqchi’ and Mopan Maya. On the nearby Moho River is the Cotton Tree Lodge, where Maya Mountain Cacao was first located before moving to the Southern Highway. The lodge caters to ecotourists and is definitely worth a visit.

 

Cacao Pods

Maya Mountain Cacao – Belize

Maya Mountain cacao comes from the Toledo and South Stann Creek districts of southern Belize. Maya Mountain is a pioneer in direct trade cacao sourcing. We love that they champion sustainable farming practices and that they pay farmers 135% more than West African farmgate prices. Their premium cacao tops our list of favorites for its complex, layered, delicate fruit flavor.

Who we are…

We are a small group of dedicated artisan chocolate makers based in New England who create exquisite chocolate from scratch. We do this in small batches from start to finish.

After over twenty years of working in the chocolate and confections industry, we followed our food interest to South America where we visited cacao growers for the first time. It was there that we learned about growing, harvesting, and fermenting cacao, and about the people who produce, sort, and grade these superior chocolate beans.

We learned about the farmers’ direct cultural lineage to the Mayans, Inca, and Aztecs, we discovered the important role that cacao plays in the lives of individual growers and their families today, and we saw that their farming practices can either preserve or decimate the rainforest for the future.

These are the people and this is the knowledge that connects Boho Chocolate to sustainable agriculture. It is these values that inspired the triangles on Boho Chocolate bars which refer to the three pillars of sustainability: environmental, social, and economic. Each is important on its own, but when all are honored, they create a strong, supportive, and balanced place where the entire ecosystem thrives.

We’re excited to make a product we love in a way that matters.

Be Authentic – Be BOHO