To create delicious dark chocolate has always been the vision of Conscious Chocolate. Our range is as healthy as it is luxurious. Our mandate is that everyone, regardless of dietary requirements, can enjoy the variety of chocolate we make.

Conscious Chocolates are handmade raw bars that are free from pesticides, dairy, gluten, soya and refined sugars. The cacao beans we use are fermented at low temperatures and sun-dried, they are never roasted so our bars remain packed full of the vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, flavonoids and theobromine that make chocolate so good for you. When cacao beans are roasted, or have sugar and milk added to them, the benefits are enormously impaired. Our chocolate is raw so you get all the health benefits and all the taste. The knowledge that chocolate can be good for you may come as a revelation.

Conscious Chocolate is only sweetened with blue agave nectar (cactus syrup). Agave nectar is suitable for diabetics as it is 85% fructose and has a low glycemic index and glycemic load (GI & GL) so it doesn’t imbalance the natural blood sugar levels.

We are registered with both the vegan and vegetarian society and can be enjoyed by coeliacs, raw foodists (the temperature is always kept below 42°C), people who are choosing to eat healthily and all chocolate lovers alike.

Conscious Chocolate is a small cottage industry situated on a farm in East Sussex, UK. We have been producing chocolate on a small scale since 2006. Now we supply health food shops, farm shops and delicatessens around the UK – and, of course, you can buy online.

The Conscious process

Inherent in our Conscious ethos is the maximisation of human input to ensure the highest possible quality. Each bar is unique. Conscious Chocolate's raw ingredients are all sourced as unheated or sun-dried, retaining all the beneficial properties of the cacao bean. The ingredients are always prepared and blended entirely by hand at low temperatures (below 42˚C). We always aim for high ethical awareness and as low an impact as possible on the environment. The packaging is all entirely biodegradable and compostable.

Conscious ingredients
Raw cacao powder, cacao butter and agave nectar (natural sweetener) form the basis of all the Conscious Chocolate range. We use a blend of sundried fruits, nuts, super foods and therapeutic grade essential oils to create a variety of different flavours. It is imperative for us to know the country of origin of each ingredient to make sure it is fairly traded, transported and ethically sourced. We ensure the ingredients are organically certified and that pesticides and spays are never used.

Health benefits
Raw cacao is the primary source of the alkaloid Theobromine (Theobroma cacao, the botanical name of the cacao nut tree, literally means 'food of the gods'); it also contains high levels of the flavoniods catechin and epicatechin, which are antioxidants. There is a plethora of information relating to scientific and medical research regarding the health benefits of these substances as well as their therapeutic applications.

Ordinarily these substances, along with other essential vitamins and minerals are broken down by a heating processes. Fortunately Conscious Chocolate's raw ingredients are all sourced as unheated or sun-dried retaining all the beneficial properties of the cacao bean.