When the news of the day has taken its toll, nothing ushers in the endorphins quite like a mouthwatering piece of chocolate. While finely crafted chocolate won't solve your problems, at least it provides a delicious, temporary distraction from the events of the day. When you choose Divine Chocolates, that small decision which provides you with a little taste of heaven, actually makes a big difference in a lot of lives.

Why a small choice makes a big difference: As the second largest exporter of cocoa in the world, Ghana's cocoa is grown in mostly small, family farms. In the past, these small family farms were at the mercy of fluctuating cocoa markets and government bureaucracy. With no advocate to represent their interests, farmers barely scraped by on the most meager of livelihoods, unable to provide the most basic of necessities for themselves and their communities.

In Ghana, Kuapa Kokoo means good cocoa growers, which is the stamp of quality from fairly compensated farmers. The mission of Kuapa Kokoo is to empower farmers so that they will strive for a better future, dignity, and liveable wages. In addition, the co-op's mission includes the encouragement of a greater role for women with increased participation in the group's activities, and to cultivate cocoa in a way that is environmentally responsible, and collectively beneficial.

Since it's humble beginnings, the Kuapa Kokoo co-op has brokered some very important relationships with investments from large, socially responsible companies like The Body Shop and Twin Trading, and partnerships with charitable organizations such as Comic Relief and Christian Aid. It was with these partnerships that Divine Chocolate was born.

Divine Chocolate is a respected Fair Trade brand known the world over as a socially responsible enterprise. The company provides chocolates known for their silky smooth texture, delicious taste, and fine quality. The dark chocolate is consistently rated as one of the finest by chocolate connoisseures and critics. Who would have thought that doing good could taste so good too?

The success of Divine means that farmers have a secure source of Fair Trade income. With an ownership share in the UK-based company and an over 30% ownership in the US-based (Washington DC) Divine Chocolates, guaranteed minimum rates per ton of cocoa, and additional support provided by Lutheran World Relief, Oikocredit, and SERRV International, the Kuapa Kokoo farmers are able to provide for their families and communities. The co-op has been able to invest its Fair Trade income in building schools, sinking wells for clean drinking water to villages, providing mobile medical clinics for farmers in remote growing regions, and fostering women’s income generation projects to help women earn additional income for their families when the cocoa season is over.

So, the next time you think about grabbing that unsatisfying grocery store chocolate, remember that when you choose Divine Chocolates, you're not only treating yourself to mouth watering fine chocolate, but you will be making a socially- and environmentally-responsible choice.