Dear
Dagobians,
I'm
always traveling to locate new suppliers and visit current
producer partners to see how our partnerships contribute
to the communities and their environment. These trips
are full of high adventure, breathtaking beauty and incredible
cacao, and inspire a new flurry of activity through the
factory. Were launching a blog this fall to let you share
in the day-to-day excitement at Dagoba. If you have burning
questions or topics you want us to address in the blog,
send
them in!
Right
now, we're really excited to update you about an ecological
research study we're co-funding at the Costa Rican cacao
estate where we source cacao for our Pacuare
Single Origin chocolate, many blends and our new Chocolate
Covered and Xocolatl nibs. When you savor these products,
you'll be supporting this important work.
The
research is being carried out by Dr. Christopher Vaughan
of the University of Wisconsin, whom I've befriended during
my farm visits. Christopher is studying sloth movement,
location, diet, health and genetics to help develop programs
for sloth conservation. The estate has an emerging wildlife
corridor and a biodiverse canopy so it is an important
refuge for about 150 sloths and other species. According
to Christopher, sloths are an endangered species in Costa
Rica and "without the habitat at the cacao estate,
the sloths wouldn't have a home. It is one of their only
refuges in the region"
During
my first trip, it was love at first sight for me and those
sloths. Our staff have grown to share this feeling after
seeing the rolls of photos I took. Maybe it's the sloths'
slow pace of life and the deep serenity in their eyes,
which remind us how important it is to maintain balance
and recharge ourselves. They always look like they're
smiling, too.
Christopher's
research, also supported by the USDA, will help measure
overall ecological health and identify how wildlife have
been affected by agriculture, livestock and human-induced
landscape changes. Little is known about sloths, so this
research will offer important new information. These findings
in turn will support the creation of conservation and
sustainable development policies that preserve and enhance
biodiversity and ecological health in this critical region.
Through this work, we're helping encourage the preservation
of the rainforest, threatened species, indigenous cultures
and exquisite cacao. This is a long-term study so please
check
our web site for updates.
We
hope you'll find the taste of our chocolate even more
exquisite knowing how it makes a difference.
Choco-Regards,
Frederick and the Dagoba Family
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