October is Fair Trade Month and I thought this was the perfect opportunity to highlight three local brands that are doing some wonderful things. Pokoloko, Hummingbird Chocolate, and Cloud Forest Coffee not only have products you’ll love but they also support fair trade. Whether it’s community or environmental impact, I love how these businesses are making conscious decisions about where their products are sourced and the positive effects they can have. Here’s how they’re making a difference and some products that need to be on your radar.
Pokoloko
Pokoloko started as two entrepreneurs selling Ecuadorian alpaca blankets out of their car to a local business that provides high-quality home and lifestyle products. This fairtrade company works with over 100 independent artisans on 4 continents in 8 countries. Pokoloko takes pride in connecting people to cultural craft and textile traditions.
You’ll find a wonderful selection of niche and curated products at Pokoloko. They make sure to keep their artisan fair prices while still making sure they have affordable prices. Drawing from the slow fashion mentality, they use natural materials like Turkish cotton that are designed to last while being versatile.
Where to shop Pokoloko: Shop online here. Your package will come in a biodegradable package. Bonus, every time you buy from Pokoloko they plant 2 trees to offset CO2 emissions. Here’s some items to check out:
Versatile Turkish Towels
You’ll love how versatile and elegant Pokoloko’s Turkish towels are. Use them as a scarf, beach spread, blanket and more. They have a variety of patterns available. Their Atzi towel (pictured below) started as a lambswool-cotton throw. Pokoloko’s Turkish artisans helped make it a towel and fleece-lined throw. Their element towel is a best-seller. This medium-weight towel has a crafty beige background and twisted tassel fringe.
Everything Alpaca
Get cozy with these fair trade Alpaca items from Pokoloko. Their alpaca wraps & scarves are designed in collaboration with a family of Indigenous artisans who live in the volcanic Andean mountain range. I love the rich colours they come in. They’re super soft and will keep you cozy. Complete your cold-weather look with their Fisherman’s hats.
Cozy Essentials
Pokoloko has plenty of items to help you get cozy. Warm-up with their robes and cozy socks. They have Pima cotton, alpaca blends, and tye-dye socks available.
From Turkey to Morocco, Pokoloko’s Tara & Wave pillows are made by highlighting skilled independent artisans.
Pair their pillows with their crinkle cotton blankets and throws. Not only do they have plenty of patterns to choose from but these blankets are super soft and make the best bed covers for summer or accent pieces for fall/winter.
Add these linen hand towels to your kitchen and bathroom. These authentic and high-quality Turkish towels are crafted to be absorptive, quick-drying and durable. They were originally used in Turkish Baths (hammams).
Eco Bags
Pokoloko’s Net Eco Bag or Mesh Eco Bag are perfect for on the go. Whether you’re using it as a purse, a day bag, or for your farmer’s market hauls. They’re made with GOTS certified organic cotton.
Hummingbird Chocolate
I was first introduced to Hummingbird Chocolate when I visited their location in Almonte and I fell in love.
Hummingbird Chocolate is an award-winning bean to bar Chocolate Maker. This means that they create from scratch, directly from the cocoa bean. It takes 10 steps and over a month to craft their chocolate from cacao bean to yummy bar. They’re committed to a sustainably-driven, direct trade model, ensuring fair quality, sustainability, and fair prices for cacao farmers. They won best chocolate maker in the world in 2016 and when you try their chocolate you’ll know exactly why.
How to Shop Hummingbird Chocolate: Visit them at their shop in Almonte, open 7 days a week, or 24/7 at their online shop. Here are some items to check out:
Single Origin Bars
Travel the world through chocolate. Hummingbird Chocolate’s single origin bars will instantly transport you to countries like Dominican Republic, Colombia and more. My favourite single origin bar is their Mayan that includes a blend of spices and a touch of heat.
Flavoured Chocolate
Enjoy a wonderful variety of flavoured chocolate like orange, mocha and more. I recently tried their pumpkin spice chocolate and loved how the delicate flavour balanced with the chocolate. Made with 60% Peruvian Cacao, this is a creamy, dark-milk chocolate with a blend of warming spices, and topped with a house-made crunchy pumpkin seed brittle.
They also have peanut butter cups. These little temptations are made with rich dark milk chocolate and scratch-made peanut butter filling
Cranberry Pepita Cocoa Nib Bark
Hummingbird Chocolate’s Cranberry Pepita Cocoa Nib Bark is the perfect partner for a fall hike or grab-n-go healthy snack. This seasonal favourite packs some serious flavour and crunch.
Toffee Nib
Hummingbird Chocolate’s toffee nib consists of chunks of handcrafted butter toffee and roasted cacao nibs sprinkled on top of their single-origin 70% dark chocolate. Enjoy a delicious and satisfying crunchy treat!
Cloud Forest Coffee
Travel to Ecuador with Cloud Forest Coffee. They source coffee from a farmer’s cooperative in Ecuador. Their coffee is roasted in small batches to ensure freshness.
Their goal is to help a coffee cooperative in the Intag region of Ecuador, so that the farmers can continue to improve their quality of life through the cultivation and sale of organic coffee. The cooperative was started as an alternative to mining development in the region. The community has been resisting against mining companies for over twenty years. Grown in a cloud forest valley nestled in the western slopes of the Ecuadorian Andes, it has a totally unique taste.
Enjoy good coffee and support these farmers in Ecuador that are resisting mining at the same time.
Cloud Forest Coffee offers four roasts:
- Ecuadorian dark roast
- Ecuadorian medium roast
- Burndian medium roast
- decaf
Where you can buy Cloud Forest Coffee: shop online, free local delivery.
These 3 local shops pair nicely together. Cozy up with some Pokoloko items while enjoying a hot cup of coffee from Cloud Forest Coffee and delicious chocolate from Hummingbird Chocolate.
This blog post was created in partnership with Pokoloko, Hummingbird Chocolate, and Cloud Forest Coffee. These local businesses are doing wonderful things and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do 🙂
Julia started Little Miss Ottawa as a way to explore her hometown as a traveller would. She’s always planning her next adventure, whether it’s local or abroad. You’ll find her exploring with her camera in hand. She hopes Little Miss Ottawa helps bring you on new and fun adventures. Happy exploring :)
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