HIRAYA CHOCOLATES is a Filipino bean-to-bar chocolate company that is an advocate of fair, sustainable, and socially-conscious practices.

Our name comes from the ancient Filipino phrase “Hiraya Manawari,” which is loosely translated as a deep and sincere wish for the desires of your (or someone's) heart to be granted. The word Hiraya in itself, means the “fruit of one’s hopes, dreams, and aspirations,” which we believe is a fitting name to such a wonderful product that brings joy to people, especially with all the love, care, and passion involved in creating it.

We are excited to share to you our big dreams for the local chocolate industry and the cacao farmers that we support.

We hope for the Philippines to be a major player in the global market by promoting locally-grown cacao beans made into quality bean-to-bar chocolate and chocolate products.

We dream to uplift the lives of our cocoa farmers by fully committing to a fair and direct trade relationship.

We aspire to become a chocolate company who showcases the best chocolate flavors from different cacao growing regions in the Philippines.

1) We have the geographical advantage

The Philippines is one of the few countries in Asia that can grow cacao trees, but we have yet to fully realize this potential. Local cacao farming is typically limited to being a backyard industry for making traditional tableyas. What we want to create is a high-value product in the form of single-origin chocolate bars that highlight the flavor nuances of cacao beans sourced from different regions in the Philippines.

Similar to wine and coffee, we strongly believe in the chocolate’s “terroir,” a term used to describe a product’s characteristic taste and flavor that is imparted by the environment—such as the soil, topography, and climate—in which it is produced. This means that, chocolate that is made from cacao beans from Davao will taste totally different from chocolate made from beans in Bicol, and elsewhere.

2) We have the historical provenance

The rare and highly prized variety of cacao-- the Criollo variety-- which originated in Mesoamerica was brought to the Philippines by the Spaniards through the Galleon Trade. We have evidence that the original trees from the Spanish era exist in small pockets around the country, especially in the regions around the old port cities. There is value in these trees because they can be considered as an heirloom variety that may be superior in flavor than the commonly available cacao tree hybrids, and we want to create premium chocolate bars from this cacao bean variety.

3) We support local farmers

As an integral part of our identity as a social enterprise, we take pride in having a direct relationship with our cacao farmers. We are committed to a sustainable and long-term partnership with our local cacao farmers by engaging in fair and direct trade to ensure that they earn more for their labor with the goal of securing them a better quality of life.

To help launch our first chocolate product-- 72.6% Single-Origin Dark Chocolate Bar, which is made from Trinitario beans that are naturally grown by our adopted community in Malabog, Paquibato District, Davao-- we need your help to fund the following initiatives:

1) Cacao bean processing facility for our farmer community in Malabog, Davao.

Our community in Davao is in need of funding to finish the construction of their own cacao bean facility, so they can ferment and dry their own beans before it is sent to our chocolate manufacturing facility.

This facility allows the farmers to be more hands-on in the processing of cacao beans, ensuring focus and accountability for producing a higher cacao bean volume of Grade A quality. To be more specific, this facility will increase farmer profits of 200% per kilogram of cacao bean.

2) Cacao seedling nursery for propagating heirloom cacao varieties

Funding will also be used to identify and propagate the local criollo varieties whose origins can be traced from the Spanish era. We want to encourage more farmers to grow a higher value cacao variety and earn more from their efforts.