Craving something sweet for Valentine’s Day? Healthy Bites ToGo Market/Café on 2521 Christian St. is now carrying LoveBars on their shelves. (Though they are popping up everywhere — Reading Terminal, Headhouse Market, Green Aisle, etc.) If you’re a chocoholic, you’ll have to try this dark chocolate, vegan, dairy-, gluten-, soy- and nut-free bar. Produced right here in Philadelphia, the bars are made simply from organic, fair-trade cacao beans, cocoa butter and organic sugar.
As if this candy couldn’t get any more hip, the wrappers feature work from local artists, and are printed at Space 1026 Gallery and Artist Collective. The featured artists are promoted on their website and at cross-promotional gallery events. Connecting local art and artisan food, one chocolate bar at a time!
The young company says it is influenced by food justice and youth empowerment work around the world. (That’s a lot for a candy bar to have on its mind!) Their blog reports that they roast, hull, grind, mélange, pour and hand wrap every single bar, and have traveled to countries such as Ecuador and Madagascar to make certain their beans are organic and fair trade.
The absolute best part? Ten percent of all LoveBar profits go to programs that support urban agriculture and/or youth development in the city!
