Sustainability
photo by Professor Nisao Ogata
“Sustainability is the avoidance of the depletion of natural resources in order to maintain an ecological balance”
With a noble thought of care we make choices with an eye that sees beyond the present, the responsibility of impact. Sustainability envisions the unfurled flower and the waters that will flow tomorrow. Fortuna is chocolate and it is also the box the chocolate arrives in and the label you read. Fortuna is the land giving birth to a cacao tree and the electricity used in our grinder, at each step we are considering how to show up for our sustainability goals.
As of February 2020 100% of our packaging is Compostable and Recyclable. This includes all of our shipping materials - even the tape we use on our boxes produced locally in Boulder, Colorado from post consumer waste. All of our tissue paper is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified as sustainably harvested and acid free. All of our packaging is printed with soy based inks, even our chocolate labels and stickers.
Compostable packaging is typically made from a number of renewable plant-based materials and/or bio-polymers. To be certified home compostable, a product must break down in home compost within 180 days and 90 days in commercial composting conditions. Cardboard and paper products are a great addition to the backyard compost as it helps with the carbon-nitrogen ratio.
Recycled packaging is made from previously used plastic or paper products, including single use bags, bottles and other common items. The paper & plastic is processed at a recycling facility and put back into circulation, thus doubling its lifespan. Recycling reduces the amount of waste sent to landfills and incinerators - it conserves natural resources and prevents pollution by reducing the need to collect new raw materials.
The FSC or Forest Stewardship Council certifies that the paper products that make up our printed tissue paper are sourced from a forest and supply chain that is managed responsibly and sustainably. FSC forest management standards are developed at an international level, and are then adapted to individual countries’ legal, social, and geographical settings, through national standards.
Acid free paper is made from cellulose fiber where the active acid pulp is eliminated during processing. It is also lignin- and sulfur-free, meaning that the ink won’t transfer from the tissue and the paper won’t leave behind any of these chemicals when decomposing.
Soy inks are an eco-friendly alternative to petroleum-based inks, made from soybeans, a renewable resource. While soy inks are slower to dry than many inks, the process produces more vibrant colors as well as having the added benefit of not leaving behind petroleum based products when decomposing. Finally, soy inks have low levels of VOCs, reducing air pollution during the drying process.