Divine Chocolate, the farmer–owned chocolate company is pleased to announce a new partnership with the RSPB. The first in a series of upcoming chocolate products is this delightful new advent calendar for Christmas 2015. Featuring a very sweet illustration of a snowy woodland scene, you'll find a Divine smooth milk chocolate animal or bird behind each door, making it an ideal gift for both wildlife and chocolate lovers alike. RRP of £4.00

This partnership has a nice synergy as the RSPB and its BirdLife partners have been working with communities in and around tropical rainforests to secure the habitat of many birds and wildlife as well as help improve the lives of those communities. Cocoa thrives in this environment so it presents a great opportunity to work together improving the livelihood of cocoa farmers and ensuring the protection of rainforests.

Both Divine and RSPB also share a commitment to consider the environmental impact of their businesses. Divine does not use palm oil and has recently removed soya due to a concern about how it is cultivated. Divine is also always looking at ways of reducing our impact through the packaging and materials we use.

Divine chocolate is made with the finest quality Fairtrade cocoa beans from Kuapa Kokoo, a co-operative of smallholder farmers in Ghana. The cocoa is grown in the shade of the tropical rainforest, and slowly fermented and dried in the sun by the farmers, who take great pride in the chocolate company they co-own.

The new advent calendar adds to Divine's successful Christmas range which this year included seven new products including milk and white chocolate lollies, milk and dark chocolate collections and limited edition 100g bars as well as Divine festive favourites; after dinner thins, chocolate coins and milk chocolate shapes.  

ENDS

For further enquires including information and images please contact Lisa Storey on lisa@divinechocolate.com

Editors notes:

• Divine Chocolate Ltd is the only Fairtrade chocolate company that is also co-owned by cocoa farmers. Kuapa Kokoo, a co-operative of 80,000 cocoa farmers in Ghana, benefit not only  from the Fairtrade premium on the sale of their beans, but also receive a 44% share of Divine's distributable profits giving the farmers more economic stability, as well as the increased influence in the cocoa industry company-ownership brings

• Keep up todatewithDivine online:
  • Everything you need to know about Divine: www.divinechocolate.com
  • For the online shop: www.divinechocolate.com/shop
  • Follow Divine on Twitter: www.twitter.com/divinechocolate
  • Follow Divine on Facebook: www.facebook.com/divinechocolate

• AllDivine products carry the Fairtrade Mark. This is an independent guarantee certified by the Fairtrade Foundation that the ingredients are sourced under internationally agreed fair trade terms and conditions. These include a guaranteed, secure minimum price, an extra socialpremium payment for the farmers to invest in their own community programmes, long term trading contracts, decent health and safety conditions – all aimed at empowering farmers to make their own improvements to living standards and prospects for the future

• The UK chocolate market alone is worth approximately £3.98 billion a year (Mintel, 2012): if Fairtrade products can capture even a small proportion of that market, producers in developing countries gain real benefits

• Divine Chocolate has won a number of prestigious awards, most recently Divine won The Guardian Sustainable Business Award for Social Impact Innovation, Social enterprise of the year 2014 and Divine's 38% Milk Chocolate with Toffee & Sea Salt was voted the “UK's Favourite Fairtrade Product” in a public poll by the Fairtrade Foundation.  Others include Good Housekeeping's Favourite Fairtrade Product 2008; Best FoodBrand in the SHE magazine Ethical Awards 2007; and Best Buy in Ethical Consumer magazine 2009.  Divine Chocolate Ltd was awarded Best Social Enterprise 2007 at the Enterprising Solutions awards run by the Office of the Third Sector and The Observer Best EthicalBusiness 2008.  Divines Dark Chocolate After Dinner Ginger Thins was awarded one star by the Guild of Fine Food at the Great Taste Awards 2013. Divine has been voted a CoolBrand 2013-14