San Francisco Bay Area chocolate maker, Guittard Chocolate Company, is launching its celebrated, honourably sourced, Fairtrade certified chocolate chips into Waitrose stores for the first time. Designed for baking, the sustainable chocolate company has been expertly crafting its chocolate since 1868 using traditional French methods.
A favourite of the baking and chocolate world, it is the preferred chocolate of GBBO winner Edd Kimber, Paul A Young, Benjamina Ebuehi and Lily Vanilli along with having been the chocolate of choice for the recent Bakers Against Racism bake sale. The listing marks the first time British consumers will be able to buy the premium chocolate from a supermarket.
The two Fairtrade certified launch varieties are the incredibly popular 31% cocoa Milk Chocolate Maxi, the extra-large milk chip delivers smooth and creamy dairy notes with a classic chocolate flavour. Guittard were the first company to launch milk chocolate chips into the US market in the early 1950s. The 63% cocoa Extra Dark Chocolate Chips are an innovative extra intense chip with subtle notes of vanilla, perfect for a rich chocolate hit the delivers every time.
Founded in San Francisco in 1868, the Guittard Chocolate Company remains the oldest continuously family-owned and operated chocolate making business in the United States. Today, it’s run by the 4th generation Guittard President, CEO and Chocolate Maker Gary, who is joined by his daughter Amy and nephew Clark. Under them, Guittard continues to raise the bar with their passion for honourable sourcing, crafting the highest quality chocolate, providing the best service, and setting new standards for the industry, an approach that is illustrated by their mission to Cultivate Better™.
At the heart of the Guittard ethic is a belief in combining tradition and adventurous innovation, in a way that not only cares for the environment but also looks after constructive relationships with their extended family of customers, co-workers, farmers and suppliers.
With a passion for promoting the sustainability of the cocoa growing regions and the wellbeing of cocoa workers, Guittard’s uncompromising attitude towards sourcing and dedication to building and nurturing relationships with their growers are hallmarks of Guittard’s “quality from the ground up” approach. Through its Cultivate Better Cocoa, it engages with cooperatives and development partners to create comprehensive programs that boost primary income streams by collaborating with farmers to improve and protect the unique flavour profiles of their cocoa. The premiums it receives are directly allocated to supporting farm-level quality and flavour investments, gender equality, income diversification, health, nutrition, and agroforestry initiatives.
So bake the best brownies, create cracking cookies and master some marvellous muffins with sustainable and delicious chocolate as favoured by bakers across the globe by choosing Guittard next time you’re at Waitrose.