Paiter Suruí - 70% Cocoa
Geographical coordinates of the cocoa harvesting site:
11° 05' 32.3" S | 61° 19' 22.6" O
Sete de Setembro Indigenous Land – Rondônia - Amazon – Brsol
Cocoa from the Sete de Setembro Indigenous Land, on the border between the states of Rondônia and Mato Grosso, is harvested by families of the Paiter Suruí (“Real People”). The incipient and limited production of almonds in the villages and the intuitive process carried out by the chocolatier César De Mendes, inspired by the spiritual aspects of the Paiter Suruí, make this bar a rarity. The fragrant chocolate carries ancestral knowledge and the effects of cultural and forest preservation, transforming both for those who consume it and for those who produce it.
The Paiter Suruí indigenous people are located in Rondônia, in the Sete de Setembro Indigenous Land, in an area of 248 thousand hectares, in a region where all the surrounding lands have been deforested, with constant threats to the territorial integrity of the Paiter Suruí. The chocolate in this bar can be considered a rarity since its origins.
The cocoa harvested in the Indigenous Land comes from a young agroforestry, with limited production, in an incipient activity, which has the support of the Communities and Territorial Governance Initiative of Forest Trends. Through the support organization, the chocolatier César De Mendes has been developing a close relationship with the Paiter Suruí culture and way of life, having the privilege of counting on a few kilos of almonds to develop a chocolate making process aligned with indigenous spirits.
In an intuitive way, De Mendes works on the fermentation of almonds and brings the knowledge of the forest and the ancestry of the “Gente de Verdade” to his factory in Colônia Chicano, which experiences the strength of alchemy through the scent felt in the streets of the community located in Santa Bárbara do Pará. “This connection with indigenous communities means a lot to me. I would say it's a turning point in my life. I work on this chocolate more from an emotional perception than with reason", sums up the chocolatier.
The partnership with Forest Trends, which is based on defending the rights and culture of indigenous peoples, supporting economic resilience and conserving their forests, in order to strengthen territorial governance, has been yielding good results, such as online training carried out with the intense participation of 17 representatives of the Paiter Suruí Indigenous People. Guided by De Mendes, they exchanged experiences on cocoa management and the process for obtaining high quality beans.
This bar is certainly a vehicle for the intrinsic values of the Paiter Suruí people and has the power to transform both those who consume it and those who produce it.
SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT The stimulation of production in agroforestry systems in the Sete de Setembro indigenous land impacts hundreds of people who live off what the Paiter Surui people produce. In this reserve threatened by illegal activities, the cocoa production chain appears as a resistance factor, as it is sustainable and socially active, in the preservation of the culture and way of life of the Paiter Suruí people.
OTHER INGREDIENTS AND SUPPLIERS *
Brown Sugar: supplied by COPAVI – Cooperativa de Produção Agropecuária Vitória, located in Paranacity, in the northwest of the state of Paraná. Founded in 1993, from the Santa Maria settlement, with just 236 hectares and 61 inhabitants, COPAVI is the longest-running experience in collective and solidary production in Paraná.
* possible changes in the supplier may happen due to the availability of the product.