PLAYin CHOC: their mission, motivations, ideas, range of products and more
I'm not sure how I found out about PLAYin CHOC but I got the PLAYin CHOC Endangered ToyChoc Box and tried the chocolate in that and I was speechless! It was so delicious!
So I reached out to find out more about the company and I would like to share their mission, motivations, ideas and range with you. Below, you’ll see the interview with Maya Simler, the founder of PLAYin CHOC.
What does PLAYin CHOC specialise in selling?
I set up PLAYin CHOC after being appalled at the waste generated by children’s plastic toys, and my shock at discovering how much big-brand chocolate is produced using child and animal labour. Rather than just sitting back and shaking my head, I rolled up my sleeves and created a chocolate recipe that my kids and husband loved. It just happened to be vegan. I designed appealing packaging and the cutest collectable toys. This was an alternative to Kinder, Ponchito, Milka and Cadbury. Wonder and magic are still at the heart of everything we do.
We make delicious natural and organic chocolate, which is not only ethically made, but our packaging is plastic-free, zero waste and 100% recyclable. We are known for our fun, collectable kids ToyChoc boxes, but we also have our popular JustChoc range for adults and our advent calendars are award-winning.
Where is PLAYin CHOC based?
Our factory is based in Uxbridge, but I live with my husband and two kids in Highgate, London.
Do you exclusively serve those who are local to you or can others access your products too? If so, how?
We are a growing global brand with over 3000 stockists, including Ocado. It is always so exciting to see people across the globe share our brand over Instagram, or see our products stocked in lovely stores when we travel abroad. We’re hoping to expand production and to be on the shelves in many more stores.
What inspired you to create a business that focuses on vegan chocolate?
I was inspired to make something dairy-free as my family is lactose intolerant. It just happened to be vegan as I don’t include any other animal products. Our chocolate has three ingredients and they are; coconut, cocoa beans and vanilla. It’s also Soil Association certified, and there is no slave or animal labour involved in the process. Super-simple, super-ethical!
How easy is it for you to source cruelty-free ingredients for your products?
It was surprisingly easy. We source from Peru, we work with companies that we know are certified as ethical, and the cacao comes from small family farms. There is no slave labour or monkey labour there. Soil Association farms are organic and slave-free and have higher standards in general. Many of our suppliers are investors in our company, so we feel as if it’s an extended family. It was more difficult to find plastic-free wrapping! We ended up buying a flow wrapping machine at the very beginning to make that happen.
Do these ingredients effect the outcome in comparison with non-vegan chocolate?
Absolutely not. If anything, we have been told our chocolate is even more delicious than non-vegan chocolate. We have won 14 taste awards so far, and a total of 23 awards in total.
There are a number of hygiene issues with commercially made chocolate. How do you manage issues around hygiene?
We are a SALSA registered food factory with a strict quality and HACCP system in place. This includes the following:
regular pest control
flying insect zappers
a covered chocolate preparation area
regular cleaning of all floors and surfaces
straining our chocolate through 0.5mm sieves
regular taste testing and visual inspection of product as it passes through production
flow wrapping each moulded chocolate bar as it comes of the automated line
For new customers who don't know what to buy; is there a particularly popular item you can name?
Our 30g JustChoc m•lk bar is a staple product in people’s handbags and cupboards. As for kids, they love the Endangered Animals, Woodland Animals and Dinosaur ToyChoc Box with collectable fact cards and puzzles that come with two delicious pieces of chocolate.
Is PLAYin CHOC owned by, or in partnership with, another company that tests on animals or sells non-vegan products?
No, this is something we are really passionate about. Our brand is 100% ethical and not associated with animal testing.
Tell me a bit about yourself before you launched PLAYin CHOC ?
I’m Maya, originally from Belgrade. As a child, I lived in Iran and Russia, before coming to London to complete a BA in Visual Communications and an MA in Scenography at Central St Martins. I taught at the American University in London and founded an interior design company.
I was brought up internationally. As a child, I spent a lot of time in nature and we were always playing outdoors. We didn’t have many toys, we made houses for wild turtles or chickens. When I was a teenager I did a diving course and saw for myself the amount of plastic on the sea bed. It was shocking, and it made me vow to do something positive to combat waste. My passion for the planet and its people drives me.
What is your vision for the future of the brand?
In the immediate future, we’re launching an exciting new range of toy designs.
Thinking larger-scale, we aim to have our products stocked on shelves worldwide as an affordable, guilt-free treat, that we can help preserve our planet for the next generation, as well as enjoying the very best chocolate.
We are also committed to raising awareness about ecological issues. Our fact cards are a fun way to find out more about animals, our social media channels highlight events such as Earth Day or the Big Wild Weekend and create a real sense of a warm, eco-friendly community. We are planning to expand on this with a dedicated ‘club’, which will be a free place to hang out and get downloadable games and activity sheets, win prizes through and it will provide lesson-planning resources for schools and home educators.
What is your opinion of commercially made chocolate?
I get upset when I think about what really goes on behind the scenes with commercially made chocolate from brands we all know. I went to a webinar recently where we learnt that children are smuggled across the border on the Ivory Coast in Africa and forced to work in the cocoa fields. If they rebel or try to escape, their feet are chained. They are not paid, and certainly not promised the dream they are told when being taken over the borders. In addition, many farms use monkeys to pick coconuts. I didn’t have a clue about most of this before I started working in the industry!
I can’t bear to think that children and adults alike in 2021 are still eating chocolate which is made by these big commercial brands where child slavery and animal exploitation are still part of a production line. I feel as if chocolate bars should have a warning label telling you about what happens in their production.
Their packaging is also non-recyclable; I see wrappers blowing about the park and woods constantly. Ours is recycled, recyclable and home compostable; and looks great too!
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