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CocoaFoundry
Natural Cocoa Powder, Single Origin Ghana, Non Alkalised
Β£3.20
for 100g
Product lead
Ghana Natural Cocoa Powder. Non-alkalised, single-origin.
Produced in Tema, Ghana, from COCOBOD-supplied Ghanaian cocoa beans. Beans are fermented, sun-dried and roasted, then pressed to extract the butter and milled into a fine powder. Non-alkalised, so natural acidity, colour and full flavour profile are retained.
Pure cocoa. No sugar, additives, or preservatives.
Sourced direct from our partner facility in Tema. Dispatched within 1 working day from our UK hub in Chelmsford, Essex.
From 100g test packs to 20kg online. Bulk and wholesale cocoa powder quoted from 25kg.
Key properties
Also known asCacao powder. The same bean, the other spelling
OriginSingle-origin Ghana, West Africa
SourceTema, Ghana. Our partner facility, direct relationship
TypeNatural (non-alkalised) cocoa powder
ProcessingFermented, sun-dried, roasted, pressed, milled. No alkalisation
pH5.0 to 5.5 (naturally acidic)
Fat content10 to 12%
ColourMedium brown
FlavourSharp, fruity, complex, characteristic of the Ghana cocoa profile
AdditivesNone
Shelf life18 to 24 months stored in a cool, dry place in an airtight container
GradeFood-grade and cosmetic-grade
CadmiumBelow 0.3 mg/kg
LeadBelow 0.1 mg/kg
ArsenicBelow 0.1 mg/kg
Heavy metals testingSGS, ICP-OES following EPA 3050 digestion
CertificationCOCOBOD-certified Β· produced in a facility certified to ISO 22000:2018 & ISO 9001:2015 (Tema, Ghana)
Our guarantee. Check your order when it arrives. If anything is damaged, short or wrong, email your order number to team@cocoafoundry.co.uk within 48 hours with a photograph where you can. You get a full refund including the original delivery charge, or a replacement if you prefer, and we cover the return carriage. We will put it right without argument. Set out in our refund policy.
What are the heavy metal levels?
Cadmium came in below 0.3 mg/kg. Lead and arsenic came in below 0.1 mg/kg. Measured by SGS on samples of our natural cocoa powder, using ICP-OES following EPA 3050 digestion.
Cadmium in cocoa comes out of the soil at the growing region rather than from anything a factory does, which is why origin decides the number and refining cannot change it. Cocoa from West Africa, Ghana included, is consistently reported far lower in cadmium than cocoa grown in the Latin American origins, where the ground is naturally richer in it. That gap is why the European cadmium limits caused years of disruption for exporters in Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia while West African material largely carried on. Why Ghana origin decides your number sets out the reasoning and the questions worth asking any supplier.
SGS · ICP-OES following EPA 3050 digestion
How to use
Baking
Use with bicarbonate of soda, because the natural acidity reacts with the alkaline raising agent for proper lift. Classic brownies, chocolate cakes, American-style recipes typically specify natural cocoa. Swapping from Dutch-processed? The leavening maths covers what to change in an existing recipe.
Health foods and smoothies
Smoothies, protein shakes, porridge, energy balls. Contains naturally occurring cocoa flavanols.
Confectionery
Dusting truffles, coating confections, adding cocoa flavour to fillings.
Cosmetics
Natural formulations. Colourant and ingredient in face masks and body scrubs.
Bulk and wholesale
Online to 20kg, quoted from 25kg. Every pack size from a 100g test pack up to 20kg is on this page and ships from Chelmsford, Essex. Above that, bulk cocoa powder is quoted against your specification, your format and the week, because a published trade price for cocoa is out of date within weeks.
No minimum on a first order. Qualify the powder on 100g, scale up to 20kg online without speaking to anyone, and come to us for a 25kg quote when the volume justifies it. Most of the makers we supply run somewhere between a couple of hundred kilos and a few tonnes a year, so a small team is the customer this is set up for.
For a wholesale cocoa powder quote, email wholesale@cocoafoundry.co.uk or use the Wholesale page. Answered within 1 working day.
The Ghana standard
Ghana's full-bodied cocoa gives you depth and complexity with naturally retained acidity. Sharp, fruity notes and natural acidity make it ideal for bicarbonate of soda recipes where the acid-base reaction delivers the lift.
For clean label work, non-alkalised means no alkalising agent is used and nothing is added.
Why we exist
CocoaFoundry did not start with a business plan. Our family had been importing Ghanaian food products into the UK for years through the parent company, learning what actually goes wrong in a cross-continental supply chain and what it costs when it does. A customer asked us to find shea butter. The supplier who found it suggested we trial cocoa butter alongside it. One shipment, and the demand behind it did not stop.
Then an early batch of cocoa butter did not meet the standard our customers needed. We pulled every unit, took the loss, and went back to the beginning. That decision is the reason we buy the way we do now. It earned us a direct purchasing relationship with our partner facility in Tema, one of Ghana's leading cocoa processors, with no broker, no trader and no third-party warehouse between their line and our hub in Chelmsford.
That is the whole proposition. You are buying from the people who hold the relationship, not from a link in a chain, so the beans, the facility and the specification stay the same order after order. Family-run, and when something goes wrong we fix it and absorb the cost rather than pass it down the line. More on how we got here.
The detail
What Is It?
Natural cocoa powder is what remains after cocoa butter has been hydraulically pressed out of cocoa mass. The dry cake is milled to a fine powder, 10 to 12% residual fat. Acidic (pH 5.0 to 5.5), lighter brown, sharper cocoa flavour.
"Natural" means no alkalising agent. Nothing added, nothing altered.
Side by side with the alternative: natural vs Dutch-processed cocoa powder, a baker's cheat sheet.
Quality & Certifications
Produced in Tema, Ghana, in a facility certified to ISO 22000:2018 (Food Safety Management) and ISO 9001:2015 (Quality Management).
Every batch is COCOBOD-certified and lab-verified. Certificates of Analysis are issued on request and cover fat content, pH, fineness, moisture, and microbiological testing.
How to read those figures when yours arrives: reading fat content and pH on a natural cocoa powder COA.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is cacao powder the same as cocoa powder?
Yes. Cacao and cocoa are two spellings for the same bean and the trade uses both. Cacao is often used to suggest a product is unroasted, so to be plain about ours: it is roasted. The beans are fermented and sun-dried at origin, then roasted before pressing and milling, because roasting is where the flavour develops. If a supplier's cacao powder is genuinely unroasted they should say so on the certificate, and it is worth asking.
What's the fat content and why does it matter?
10 to 12% residual fat, typical for natural cocoa powder. Lower fat content means more concentrated cocoa solids per gram, delivering a more intense cocoa flavour in baked goods, hot chocolate, and confectionery. For applications wanting a higher-fat finish (richer mouthfeel, glossier ganache), pair with our cocoa butter or cocoa mass.
Is this suitable for cosmetic formulation?
Yes, food-grade and cosmetic-grade. Used as a natural colourant and active ingredient in face masks, body scrubs, and clay-based products. Our partner facility's certifications (ISO 22000:2018, ISO 9001:2015) cover food safety and quality management. COA available with cosmetic-relevant testing on request.
How does single-origin Ghana cocoa compare to broker-supplied or blended powders?
Single-origin means every kilogram comes from one country with one flavour profile, with no batch-to-batch swings as broker blends rotate suppliers. Buying direct from our partner facility in Tema means full traceability, batch-level COAs, and consistent processing standards. Broker-supplied blends typically don't disclose origin or processing detail to that level.
How should I store cocoa powder?
Cool, dry place, airtight container. Absorbs moisture and odours easily. 18 to 24 months properly stored. No refrigeration needed.
Sourcing & Ordering
Pack Sizes
100g250g500g1kg2kg5kg10kg15kg20kg
Available through our online shop up to 20kg. Order a 100g pack to test the powder in your application before committing to larger volumes.
Trade & Bulk (25kg+): email wholesale@cocoafoundry.co.uk or visit the Wholesale page for trade pricing, quoted within 1 working day.
All orders dispatched within 1 working day from Chelmsford, Essex, tracked, with UK delivery typically 2 to 3 working days. Free delivery on orders over Β£50 to most UK mainland postcodes.
Certificates of Analysis: batch-specific COAs with full chemical and microbiological testing available on request. Email team@cocoafoundry.co.uk.