The precious diversity of Nicaragua is to be found not only in its wild flora and fauna (not for nothing is it called “The Land of Lakes and Volcanoes”- many of the latter still being active) but also in the numerous ethnic groups which have shared the land since time immemorial, some of whom are considered, in ancestral traditions, to have received the treasured gift of cacao from the gods. The country enjoys a tropical climate which is ideal for agriculture, one of the principal sources of revenue of the people. Cacao is one of the main crops and it is of increasing importance since it can also help temper climate change thanks to the reforestation of areas which have been heavily exploited in the past. Some years ago a group of business people decided to invest in training local farmers to produce a cacao which is rigorously controlled during all the stages of transformation, from cultivation of the plant to the processing of the beans: Ingemann. The aim is to provide top quality chocolate makers with the best cacao, thus helping to strengthen the sector in Nicaragua and, above all, contributing to the development of the communities of small farmers, directly involved in the value chain of cacao processing. During the work of selecting the great genetic wealth of cacao in Nicaragua, a number of ancient varieties of Trinitario-Acriollado cacao have been found, such as that of the Waslala area, in the northern, mountainous part of the country in the Bosawas Natural Reserve. This reserve, highly protected and extremely remote, is the largest in Central America and was declared a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 1997. Thus we have chosen this cacao for our single-origin Nicaragua bars, because it adheres to the highest standards of quality and assures complete traceability and sustainability. Our O’PAYO™ Profundo comes from this uncontaminated place. It is grown organically and processed by us using the Raw method. According to this method the cacao is treated as gently as possible and its original flavour profile safeguarded. We thus obtain our Trinitario Acriollado Fine Raw Chocolate 72 ½ O’PAYO™ Profundo Organic Cacao – Single Region Waslala, Nicaragua. It has an intense creaminess and natural sweetness with notes of candied citrus, the pleasant bitterness of almond and persistent hints of tropical fruit and a finale of flowers. Aruntam is delighted to offer you a taste of uncontaminated goodness with this special bar. Thinking of the nature and the origins of what is one of the primeval foods – wheat – for our bar we have chosen the image of women clasping ears of wheat in their hands, a symbol of rebirth and a sign of hope and a radiant future. These women represent wisdom and the hard toil of all farmers throughout the world, now more than ever called upon to preserve the natural environment which surrounds them.