Seth's Blog : Figs, ivy, silphium and of course, commerce

Figs, ivy, silphium and of course, commerce

It’s just a week until Valentine’s Day, a multi-billion dollar spending jamboree.

As often happens, the people we depend on for much of it get the short end of the deal, but a little mindful planning can make a difference.

The heart shape we associate with love came from leaves. The ivy and fig leaves in ancient paintings, and perhaps the silphium leaf of the giant fennel plant, associated with aphrodisiacs.

180 years ago, Richard Cadbury combined two innovations–he added sugar to bitter drinking chocolate, and he put the chocolates in a red, heart-shaped box.

About a hundred years ago, Joyce Hall brought valentine’s cards to the USA.

The race was on. Best not to show up empty-handed.

If you care, avoid cheap chocolate. Cheap chocolate comes from cacao grown by some of the poorest people on Earth, many of them children, under conditions that are the direct result of oligopoly commodity power.

Acumen has invested in several chocolate companies that are committed to systemic change in the chocolate business that also happen to make extraordinary chocolate.

And my friends at Askinosie have sold almost all of our limited edition collectible chocolate bar.

When we give a gift, we like to think that it’s the thought that counts. But our actions are votes, signals to the market, and a message to manufacturers.

Cheap chocolate might be convenient, but we can care enough to change the system.

Don’t buy cheap chocolate for someone you care about.