About Us
Like all stories, ours has a simple version and a magical one.
The simple version is that I came to Colombia, couldn't understand why it was so difficult to find really good chocolate in a country growing some of the finest cacao in the world, and decided to learn how to make it myself. I had recently been through some major changes in my life, had fallen completely in love with Colombia, and needed a reason to stay. Cacao became that reason.
I learned the way I learn most things: curiosity, Google, lots of questions, good people, and quite a few mistakes. Somewhere along the way the chocolate got much better, but something else happened too. I met Esther and her family, began learning from the Arhuaco traditions of the Sierra Nevada, and discovered that cacao could be much more than an ingredient. What began as a chocolate project slowly became a community, a home, and a completely different way of living.
More than a decade later, Esther is still beside me, making chocolate, caring for cacao, raising her family and helping shape Origen into what it is today. Together we've grown from our first farm in Barbosa to Territorio de Origen, our 120 hectare nature reserve in the mountains of Antioquia, where cacao grows among forest, rivers, wildlife and the slightly chaotic collection of people and animals who call this place home.
After all these years, we still believe there is something magical about cacao. We’re just lucky enough to have made a life around it.
DISCOVER
Chocolate That Connects
Our community has come together based on our mutual love of the plant medicines, this earth, and our desire to work together to make it a better place. We are committed to the hope for a future connected to spirit, to the interexchange of knowledge, living in harmony.
Our multicultural family is based here at our Territory, and the Origen Cacao factory is in the heart of it all. We support the indigenous communities of Colombia, because they too, are our family. We do this though fair and ethical trade, educational and community support, sharing their stories, and helping them continue the traditions.
- Built from friendship, healing, and shared land stewardship
- Rooted in tradition, spirit, and deep respect for nature
- Created in community, not just a company
Staying connected to source
Living in coherence
To live with coherence and integrity means our actions consistently reflect our deepest values and beliefs. We take this commitment incredibly seriously.
We have the privilege to live surrounded by nature, the honor of being taught by the elders of the indigenous communities, but we've also witnessed the devastating impact of corporate greed and drug trafficking on delicate ecosystems and indigenous communities, even losing dear friends and elders.
This compels us to live in true coherence with our ideals. For us, this translates into zero plastic packaging—rejecting even so-called "compostable PLA" or recyclable materials, which we see as false solutions. It means actively supporting our indigenous friends, even when it's challenging. It means sharing their vital stories so others can connect. It means paying a premium for cacao and nurturing those relationships to bring you beautiful, ethically sourced products. And it means dedicating ourselves to care for our territory, which means supporting each other, working hard, and even sometimes its sleepless nights, to care for abandoned animals.
This path isn't easy or always convenient, but if we don't hold ourselves to these standards, how can we expect it from anyone else? We hope we can inspire you to live in your highest good, honoring what is true for you.
Our Chocolate
The cacao beans used in our chocolate bars have been carefully selected for each region’s unique flavors. We purchase direct from the farmers at above fair trade pricing. Our beans are organic, though not certified. All single origin bars are 70 grams.
