I have a confession to make. I love chocolate. It’s my drug of choice, my not-so-secret pleasure.

That’s why I was tickled recently to find that Ecuador, one of the countries we’re considering as a place to live, is a good source of the luscious beans. According to MarketWire,

“Where do the Swiss go to buy the best chocolate in the world? The Trade Commission of Ecuador says it’s a little known fact that Swiss chocolatiers have been traveling to South America for centuries, specifically Ecuador, to stock up on Arriba Nacional cacao.”

Eduardo Borrero, Ecuadorian trade commissioner, stated in the same article:

“Ecuadorian chocolate is organic, sustainable, fair trade, superior in quality and when Americans discover they can drastically reduce their carbon footprint by cutting out the ‘middleman’ they will take a serious look at the label for the word ‘Arriba’ before their next chocolate purchase.”

I say, “bring it on!”

The World Wide Chocolate website describes Ecuadorian Arriba chocolate as:

“a special cocoa varietal with a perfumed floral scent. Its flavor is smooth, with a dominant jasmine note and nutty after-tones.”

National Geographic Traveler describes the Kallari Association, a chocolate cooperative which grows the cacao and makes the chocolate. According to the article by Sarah Aldrich, Association members have the opportunity to earn a living without clearcutting the Amazon rainforest. So we can feel really good about eating their product!

Ecuador just moved up a few points in my “next country to live in” stakes.

Would locally grown cacao induce you to choose one country to live in over another? Weigh in by clicking the comment link below.