Behind the Scenes at Orfève
At Orfève, we don’t see cacao as a mere raw material.
It’s a culture, in the agricultural sense, but also in the human one.
And this culture is something we share with those who live it every day: the producers.
A relationship built on respect and listening
Behind every batch of beans we work with, there are hands, faces, gestures.
There are women and men who sow, prune, harvest, ferment, and dry.
Our work doesn’t begin in our workshop, it begins in the field.
We choose our partners not only for the quality of their beans, but also for the vision they carry. A vision where cacao is not a commodity, but a local pride, a craft, a long-term commitment.
A shared standard of excellence
The quality of a chocolate begins with the quality of the fermentation and drying. That requires deep knowledge of agricultural practices, soil conditions, and microclimates. But it also requires constant dialogue: we exchange with our partners on flavor profiles, sorting methods, fermentation experiments, varietal trials.
We co-build. These are relationships based on transparency, trust, and a shared quest for excellence.
More than sourcing: a commitment
Working directly with producers also means standing by them.
It means paying a fair price for their beans, well above world market rates.
It also means respecting the pace of the land, the uncertainties of climate, and the real conditions on the ground.
Each time we open a bag of cacao, we know what it contains: not only a noble ingredient, but also a story, a landscape, and a shared know-how.