"Ceremonial quality cocoa from Guatemala ~ The food of the gods"
 

 
 This special cacao is lovingly produced by the women's collective "Ruk'u'x Ulew" with great care and passion. The term "Ruk'u'x Ulew" comes from the Kaqchikel dialect and means something like "heart of the earth".
 

 
 Cecilia, an indigenous Mayan woman and founder of this women's collective, feels that using this term in connection with the traditional production of cacao honors her Mayan culture and heritage.
 

 
 After harvesting, only the finest beans are selected, fermented in banana leaves, and roasted over an open wood fire. The result is a delicious cacao with a smooth, lightly roasted, and traditional flavor of pure cacao. The processing is carried out carefully and with loving care by hand.
 

 
 Cecilia recounts: “I start roasting the cocoa beans at 4 a.m. At this hour I receive the best messages. I see how the spirit of the cocoa plant connects all the people who work with it .”
 

 
 For millennia, cacao has been considered the "food of the gods," particularly in Central and South America. It is said that the spirit of cacao only leaves its beloved forest when nature and humanity are out of balance.
 

 
 Even before the cocoa begins its journey, it is blessed in Guatemala.