Green Valentine's Day gifts: Chocolates

It's a favourite with all ages, it's affordable and it's readily available. What's not to like about ethical chocolate?
Eco concerns• Pesticides. Like any food crop, the cacao plantations that provide our chocolate often use pestcides - Brazil uses them prolifically. Buy organic-certified chocolates to avoid pesticides.
• Pay. It's no coincidence that Maya Gold Green & Blacks chocolate was the first official Fairtrade product in the UK, so look for the Fairtrade label or, as Seventypercent.com suggests, buy from brands that have a close relationship with growers.
• Carbon footprint. Most of the chocolate we eat in the UK is sourced from Africa, central America and southern America, so inevitably it clocks up carbon enroute. There's not much you can do about this, until carbon labelling takes off in a big way; Cadbury, for example, has already measured the CO2 emitted from making a bar of its Dairy Milk.
Top 5 green choices
1. Malagasy - many of the co-operative growers supplying this British brand are certified organic, and the company aims to keep profits in the local Madagascan economy. Bars start at £3.25
2. Divine - a Fairtrade stalwart, Divine has plenty of gift sets that are perfect for Valentine's. It's not organic, but Divine point out that many of its Ghanian farmers use organic methods without certification. Bars start at around £1.25
3. Green & Blacks - a great staple with organic certification. From around £1.75 and upwards.4. Chocolala - a small Yorkshire firm that sources Fairtrade chocolate and local cream from a dairy down the road. The story of founder Niladri makes for interesting reading. Box sets from £25.5. Booja Booja - organic chocolates handmade in Norfolk. Lots of gift ideas, with a box of champagne truffles costing £7.29.