Fair Trade Chocolate You CAN Eat on Passover
Rabbi Aaron Alexander, Associate Dean, Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at the American Jewish University, gave a Rabbinic psak on March 15, 2013 that Equal Exchange chocolates that are marked pareve (the 80 gram bars. dark chocolate minis and chocolate chips) may be purchased before Passover and consumed on Passover”. These products are soy and gluten free. For people following Conservative halacha, products must be in the house the day before Passover, prior to Bedikat Chametz.
These products are included on the Conservative Movement Rabbinical Assembly’s Approved for Passover 5778 list.
These products include:
- Organic Dark Chocolate with Almonds Bar
- Organic Mint with a Delicate Crunch Bar
- Organic Orange Dark Chocolate Bar
- Organic Ecuador Dark Chocolate (65% Cacao) Bar
- Organic Panama Extra Dark Chocolate Bar
- Organic Very Dark Chocolate Bar
- Organic Lemon Ginger with Black Pepper Bar
- Organic Extreme Dark Bar (88%) – new for 2017
- Organic Dark Chocolate Minis
- Organic Semi-Sweet (55% Cacao) and Bittersweet (70%) Chocolate Chips
With deep appreciation to Rabbi Menachem Creditor (Congregation Netivot Shalom, Berkeley, CA) who initiated the conversation) and Rabbi Tuvia Hod of Kosher Germany (Equal Exchange’s Kosher certifier)
NEW GIFT BOX THIS YEAR: Bring this gift of eight Kosher for Passover, organic chocolate bars to your seder host. The fairly traded chocolate communicates the Pesach message of the liberation of workers, including children who are often forced to work in cacao fields
Equal Exchange products can be purchased online and found at Whole Foods, natural foods stores, and food coops. To find a specific store near you, please call Equal Exchange’s Customer Service dept. at 774-776-7366.
With deep appreciation to Rabbi Menachem Creditor who offers this inspiring kavanah:
Every generation learns that things are more than they seem. This chocolate I hold is more than just chocolate. This is a symbol of potential freedom, a realization that foods that give me delight can be made without child labor. Joy need not be accompanied by pain or oppression. May I experience the sweet flavor of this gift as a hint of the freedom that birthed it. May the world know liberation, one person at a time, mindful act by mindful act, until all people are free.
Other Fair Trade Passover Resources can be found here:
Other resources about Chocolate and Child labor can be found here:
