Love Chock Part 1 | Bentoya Friends
Words by Benoit | Photos by danpape
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Love. Chock. Love. Chock.
What is it all about?
About love and chocolate, as you might have guessed. Indeed, Lovechock is a Dutch company which makes vegan, organic and gluten-free raw chocolate… and their “Lovechock Bars” are also available in Japan! But what is so special about this chocolate?
It is no secret that amount of people that love chocolate can barely resist the temptation to eat a square, never mind an entire bar. If any chocolate is within reach, almost all of the time an entire chocolate bar will be consumed. This is due, of course, to the delicious taste of cocoa it is partly made of, but also because of its high sugar and fat content. In other words, our love for chocolate is in most cases dangerous for our health. This is especially true when the the cocoa is not organic containing a large number of additives. In some cases brands can be quite at odds with local communities, and cause environmental and even animal welfare issues. Thwarted love.
Recently however, some chocolate makers and companies have developed healthier and more human and environmently-friendly types of chocolate bars, which are organic, fair-trade and free of allergenic substances (gluten, dairy), additives (soy lecithin), palm oil and refined sugar. In addition to these “rational” benefits, these chocolate bars are also even tastier than ordinary ones because they contain around 80 % of cocoa and are made from cold ground beans instead of roasted beans – this is what the “raw” stands for. As for the Lovechock bars, there is a wide variety of choice and flavours, including Goji Orange, Mulberry Vanilla, Almond Fig, 94 % cocoa, etc., and less than 7 grams of sugar per 100g.
Mainstream chocolate bars are not usually environmentally neutral and still contain significant amounts of fat. If you want to maximize pleasure while reducing your environmental impact, preserving your health and respect for animal life, Love Chock is probably going to be your best bet.