CHOC Chick, the brand behind unique raw chocolate making kits and organic raw cacao ingredients, has scooped the Food and Drink Award at the JANEY LOVES 2016 Platinum Awards with its Organic Raw Cacao Powder.
The awards recognise the best in natural, eco, organic products and services. The winners were announced on September 30 2016.
Singer, author, television presenter, radio presenter and judge, Janey Lee-Grace, said ‘I’ve loved CHOC Chick’s organic cacao from the very beginning. Such an ethical and fabulous brand and winner of the Janey Loves Platinum Award in 2014, 2015 and 2016. What’s not to love?’
The win is the latest in a string of accolades and milestones for the business and its founder, Galia Orme. September also saw Galia win the Women Empowerment 2016 award at the 4th Women Empowerment Summit, held at the European Sustainability Academy on the Greek island of Crete. Galia is also a finalist in the Business Parent of the Year category of this year’s Mumandworking Awards for London and the South East. The winner will be announced on 11 October 2016.
CHOC Chick’s Organic Raw Cacao Powder was a winner in the Women’s Health 50 Best Food Awards 2016. And its Blissful Blends Heart-Warming Cinnamon and Cacao blend was nominated for the Best Free-From Product Award in the Healthy Living Awards 2016.
With its products now available in 400 Holland & Barret stores across the UK, CHOC Chick has expanded into the Netherlands and Belgium. In the Netherlands, the CHOC Chick Starter Kit for Christmas and the CHOC Chick Heart Warming Cinnamon Blissful Blend are proving especially popular.
Online meanwhile, CHOC Chick has a new outlet on Amazon, while Ocado and Holland & Barrett are offering special Christmas discounts on its products.
The company is now distributing up to 7000 products every month and, driven by a need for more space, has moved into new premises. CHOC Chick has also appointed Kate Ballard to the role of product manager.
CHOC Chick is getting ready to celebrate Chocolate Week with a new website due to be launched on October 10th. This CHOChub, which will be CHOC full of recipes, videos, products and chocolate-related news.
Running from 10 to 16 October this year, Chocolate Week is the nation’s favourite themed week. As well as promoting fine chocolate, it supports independent chocolatiers and companies who work with cocoa farmers by encouraging consumers to pay a fairer price for their chocolate.
A firm supporter of these aims, Galia has met the farmers and has just returned from visiting the plantations in Ecuador, where her cacao is sourced. She was struck by the outstanding hygiene at the plantations and production site, which is FSSC 22000 (Food Safety System Certification) accredited and particularly by the transparency and complete traceability from plantation to delivery to the UK of the single origin Nacional Arriba bean that CHOC Chick import. Galia also visited areas affected by the April 2016 earthquake and has campaigned to encourage more people to support this region by buying more Ecuadorian products.
CHOC Chick was the first raw chocolate company in the UK to import directly from Ecuador.
With Christmas just round the corner, CHOC Chick has a gift for everyone. The range includes the CHOC Chick Starter Kit, RRP £12.99 – with everything needed to make raw chocolates, truffles and cocktails (CHOCtails) and the CHOC Chicos Kit, dairy free chocolate making for children. Also available is the new Blissful Blends range of blended organic raw cacao powder with cinnamon or mandarin, RRP £7.99 for 250g, as well as their popular award winning organic raw cacao powder, RRP £3.99 for 100g and £6.99 for 250g and organic raw cacao butter, RRP £4.99 for 100g and £8.99 for 250g.
CHOC Chick products are stocked in over 600 stores across the UK, US and Europe. These include Holland & Barrett UK, De-Tuinen (Benelux region), Whole Foods Market UK, Whole Foods Market USA (North Atlantic region), John Lewis, OCADO, Waitrose Online, Harvey Nichols, Infinity Foods and Magasin Du Nord in Copenhagen.