A Fairtrade First! Organic Chocolatier Cocoa Loco Opens UK's First 100% Fairtrade Chocolate Shop

Sussex-based chocolate artisans Cocoa Loco opened their first retail outlet in Horsham, West Sussex in September 2014 to coincide with the town's Annual Food and Drink festival ('The Big Nibble') and Organic September; the UK's biggest celebration of all things organic.

Rory Payne, Managing Director said, "We are thrilled that finally we have a permanent home from which we can sell our gorgeousOrganic and Fairtrade chocolates. They are made in small batches on the Knepp Estate in West Grinstead, just a stone's throw from our shop."

Commenting on the success of the shop, Cocoa Loco founder Sarah Payne said, "The response from customers so far has been phenomenal and we have been overwhelmed by the positive comments. Local people love that we are a small, local family business and that our chocolate is produced ethically using only organic and Fairtrade ingredients. We have many new, scrumptious and innovative products for Halloween and Christmas which we can't wait to reveal in the shop!"

"It is so important to Rory and I that our chocolate is produced to the highest welfare and environmental standards by people who care passionately about what they do and who are paid fairly for their skills and efforts. We love the fact that by working with Fairtrade we are showing our support for farmers and producers around the world and in doing so are making a positive contribution."

Horsham has officially been a Fairtrade town since 2005; incidentally the same year that Cocoa Loco was born, with Sarah baking brownies in her Aga at home and then selling them on the internet and at local farmers markets.

Cocoa Loco MD, Rory Payne said: "Sarah has always wanted to open a Cocoa Loco chocolate shop. It's been immensely rewarding for the whole team to see her vision realised. This is such an exciting time for us. We have an amazing team that cares about the products they produce. They've worked ridiculously hard to produce enough chocolate to fill our shop, which incidentally we managed to open in less than 2 days after we signed the lease and were given the keys!"

Notes

Fairtrade Horsham - For more information on Horsham's status as a Fairtrade town.

http://www.fairtradehorsham.org.uk/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/Fairtrade-directory-2009-2.pdf

Organic September - The UK's biggest celebration of all things organic. This year sees the launch of the Small Changes, Big Difference campaign. For more information visit http://www.soilassociation.org/smallchangesbigdifference

The Soil Association is a membership charity campaigning for planet-friendly food and farming. We believe in the connection between soil, food, the health of people and the health of the planet. See http://www.soilassociation.org for more information.

Cocoa Loco are an organic and fairtrade chocolate company operating in the heart of West Sussex, who believe that delicious handmade chocolate can be 100% ethical too. Their chocolate is single origin and lovingly handmade in small batches by skilled chocolatiers. Suppliers include Abel and Cole, John Lewis, Selfridge's and Harvey Nichols plus many other fine food emporiums. Their range includes bars, truffles, big fat buttons, brownies, flapjacks, cookies and much more.

For more information about Cocoa Loco visit http://www.cocoaloco.co.uk/about-us

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