Sustainable vegan chocolate bars (the best brands)

 

Avoid caffeine for pregnancy/nursing. Keep away from pets due to chocolate, nuts etc. Read more on keeping pet safety at Christmas.

Ombar (made with proper cacao in Cambridge)

Ombar is made by a small team in Cambridge with cacao (for superior taste and quality). They say ‘Cocoa? We don’t know her!’ Flavours (and even the biscuity ones have no palm oil) include:

• Creamy oat m*lk and smooth dark
• Raspberry coconut and pistachio cream
• Vegan biscuit (like Yorkie bars!)
• Hazelnut truffle (tastes like Nutella)
• Caramelised or matcha blonde (green chocolate!)

Raw Halo (organic raw vegan chocolate)

Raw Halo is one of England’s nicest chocolate brands! The brand began as a kitchen experiment, blending organic cacao with a touch of coconut sugar. An instant hit with friends and family, today this range is sold everywhere, including overseas.

All the ingredients are sourced ethically from fair trade farmers. The bars contain coconut milk for natural creaminess and superfood lucuma powder (tastes like maple shortbread). And it’s made ethically too, and sold in sustainable packaging.

For each bar of Raw Halo sold, the brand plants trees in the Andes forests of Peru and Tanjung National Park in Indonesia. So far in partnership with One Tree Planted, it has planted over 30,000 trees that help to support ecosystems and give back to places where the chocolate ingredients are grown.

Raw Halo chocolate bars

• Mylk & hazelnut
• Mylk & salted caramel
• Mylk & vanilla
• Mylk & pink salt
• Dark & mint
• Dark & orange
• Dark & salted almond
• Dark & pink salt
• Dark chocolate

Raw Halo chocolate buttons

• Dark and salted almond
• Mylk and hazelnut

Raw Halo snacks 

Avoid for children due to choking hazard.

• Mylk chocolate raisins
• Mylk chocolate cashews
• Dark chocolate hazelnuts
• Dark chocolate almonds

Luisa’s Vegan Chocolates (from Nottingham)

Luisa’s Vegan Chocolate is made in Nottingham, and pays farmer above standard fair trade prices. The chocolates are mostly based around cashew mylk, and available in many flavours including rose, white and matcha.

Plus there are Easter eggs and advent calendars, in sustainable packaging.

Coco Caravan (artisan chocolate from Gloucestershire)

Coco Caravan is a small brand founded by an ecologist (his artist partner designs the mandalas on the eco-friendly packaging). Sweetened with coconut sugar, it works with regenerative farmers who reuse other parts of the beans for products like tea, to ensure nothing goes to waste.

Hand-crafted in Stroud (Gloucestershire), the range includes bean-to-bar chocolate, and even vegan organic Easter eggs in cardboard boxes. Like coffee, the range is listed by country, rather than flavour. Choose from:

• Brazil
• Colombia
• Guatemala
• Jamaica
• Mexico
• Peru
• Tanzania

Play in Choc (plastic-free Kinder alternatives)

PLAY in CHOC offers organic vegan chocolates made with Peruvian cacao beans from family farms, organic Madagascan vanilla and organic creamed coconut from Indonesia.

These are ‘eco alternatives to Kinder eggs, with each box containing a 3D educational puzzle toy, to learn about endangered species. Never leave any toy (even natural) unsupervised with children.

Did you know that Kinder eggs are banned in the USA due to choking hazards from the inside toys. But not in the UK?

Inspiration from abroad: Denman Island Chocolate

Here at England, Naturally – we like to sometimes profile brands from abroad, as they are doing things that are unique and inspirational, and could inspire companies back home.

Denman Island Chocolate (Canada) makes delicious single-serving chunk bars from organic vegan ingredients.

A portion of profits are used to help local groups that support environmental conservation. So far it has raised over $100,000 to help local wildlife (including an Orca Coconut Bar to help preserve habitats for killer whales, who are this company’s ocean neighbours!) They also have a ‘grizzly bar’ to help bears!

In business for almost 30 years, the brand was founded by a husband and wife (she sadly died some years ago) so now he carries on their work. The brand has recently been sold to one of its employees, to ensure the tradition carries on.

It makes natural chocolate bars from tasty ingredients like toasted hazelnuts, espresso beans, candied ginger, dried raspberry and cherries, coconut milk and chilli powder.