I know that what makes me happy is not what delights everyone, but that’s okay. We all find our bliss in different places and in different ways. For me, taking care of the Earth is a joy. It’s not a chore, or something boring I do because I should. It’s part of who I am. It’s great when I find others who are as passionate about sustainability as I am, and whose environmental and social ethos matches my own. This post is a dedication to a much-loved brand, to nature, good health and great food. I love Loving the Earth.
Loving Earth is an Australian owned and operated company based in Melbourne. The original idea for the business was conceived a decade ago in India, inspired by James Lovelock’s The Gaia Hypothesis and a desire to assist indigenous communities around the world to grow and market their ancient crops for commercial purposes, enabling them to create an economic livelihood through sustainable management of the Earth’s botanical assets in their respective geographic regions. This idea has blossomed into a wonderful vision that honours the Earth, nature, indigenous communities and the consumer.
The company’s motto is Healthy – Sustainable – Fair and reflects the guiding principles on which the company is built. Loving Earth’s products are free of refined sugar, gluten, dairy and preservatives. The ingredients are organic and wild-harvested as close to their raw state as possible, to maintain maximum nutrition and their cultural significance as ‘superfoods’. Native crops are grown organically, utilizing principles of permaculture and cultivation methods that restore, not damage, the environment. Indigenous farmers are paid fair wages, gain occupational skills, and are empowered to improve practices at the ‘point of origin’ so that more funds are invested back into their communities.
The company has made a solid commitment to socially and environmentally sustainable practices. Their raw cacao is grown in Peru by co-operatives run by indigenous communities, not in Africa, where cacao crops are harvested by children who work in demanding conditions that endanger their health and lives. The raw cacao travels less food miles from Peru than it would if it came from Africa to the point of production. Their philosophy recognizes the existence of an inter-connected ecosystem that includes their growers, suppliers, customers, staff and the Earth. They actively work to give something back to the Earth for what they receive from the environment to run their business.
Loving Earth invests in sustainable packaging technologies to avoid plastic packaging made from non-renewable resources. Their packaging is made from renewable resources including non-GMO corn/potato starch and wood cellulose from FSC certified plantations. Loving Earth’s raw chocolate, Luvjus (re-branded as Chocolate Luv Hearts) and Buckinis ranges are packaged in 100% plant-based post-consumer recycled (and recyclable) fibre. The packaging is printed with vegetable-based inks. The inner wrapping looks and feels like plastic but is made from plant-based renewable material and is 100% compostable under the right environmental conditions.
I discovered Loving Earth only a short time ago, but their products have become a wonderful addition to my life, not just for their health benefits, but because I love the company’s philosophy and the unique creativity of the idea behind the business. The great thing about nutrient-dense food is that we can enjoy it knowing it will improve our health, not deplete it. Loving Earth products provide our bodies with life-giving nutrition, support indigenous communities and protect the environment.
I’m working my way through sampling their entire product range, but here are some all-time favourites:
The Mint & AFA Luvju* combines organic raw cacao, blue-green algae and peppermint essential oil and is guaranteed to make your taste buds sing and your body zing. Eating one of these makes me feel alive. The algae give a burst of living chlorophyll, while raw cacao provides valuable antioxidants.
The Caramel Chocolate is made with raw organic cashews, raw cacao butter and coconut flesh, and tastes like caramel, without the refined sugar. It’s creamy and divine and full of healthy oils that melt in your mouth. It’s very difficult not to devour the entire bar in one sitting.
The Yellow Kale Chips* are little leaves of life-giving, nutrient-dense kale, protein, calcium, fibre and anti-oxidants, coated with a spicy mix of raw cashews, organic carrots, organic coriander, organic olive oil and sea salt. I add them to soups and vegetable curries to enhance the flavour.
The Purple Luvju Raw Organic Superfood Bar* is bursting with antioxidants from maqui and acai berries, and heart-enhancing vitamins and minerals from cashews, white mulberries, sour cherries and raw cacao. Densely nutritious and full of natural mood elevators, one of these bars is enough to sustain me for long periods.
*Loving Earth no longer make these products.
The Hazelnut Chocolate Butter is a healthier version of commercial hazelnut spreads, and is a combination of raw hazelnuts, crushed cacao beans and evaporated coconut nectar.
The Activated Almonds are wild-harvested and organic. The activation process involves soaking the nuts in water and drying them at low temperatures below 40°C, which releases the enzyme inhibitors and makes the nuts highly nutritious and more easily digested…and crunchy!
If you live in Australia, the next time you’re in a health food shop, check out Loving Earth’s product range – they aren’t hard to miss – look for the colourful packages and their distinctive logo. You will be supporting a company that honours the gifts of the Earth and endorses business practices that help the environment, not harm it. The product range also includes single ingredients so you can make your own raw chocolate or superfood creations. Try a new exotic ingredient such as Gubinge, Macqui or Lucuma and head to the Recipes section of their website for inspiration.
Buying products that are hand-crafted with love and respect using organic raw superfoods from companies like Loving Earth ensures the environment is managed sustainably and indigenous communities are able to make a living from cultivating the foods of their ancestors without chemicals, exploitation or environmental damage. What’s not to love?
Environmental Warrior 