A cooperative that started with the supply chain, not the label
Camino did not start as a chocolate brand. It started as a cooperative. La Siembra Co-operative was founded in Ottawa in 1999 with a specific goal: build a Canadian supply chain for fair trade cocoa and sugar that connected small-scale farmer cooperatives in the global south directly to Canadian consumers, without the usual chain of open-market brokers in between. The Camino brand followed as the consumer expression of that supply chain.
That order matters. It is why the story on La Siembra's about page reads as a mission statement about the food system first and a product line second. La Siembra describes its work as “equitable trade…through partnerships with producer co-operatives that foster sustainable livelihoods and community development,” and the retail brand carries the cooperative's language rather than a founder's.
The certification milestone that anchors the story arrived in 2002. La Siembra Co-operative certified the first fair trade cocoa, chocolate, and sugar in North America that year, pre-dating the mainstream retail rollout of fair trade branding in Canadian grocery by a decade or more. For most CPG brands, fair trade arrived as a marketing overlay on an existing supply chain. For Camino, it was the supply chain.
What is in the Camino line?
Camino's current retail catalogue at camino.ca/products (verified 2026-07-09) is organised around five categories, each built from the same cooperative-sourced ingredient base:
- Chocolate bars — 15 SKUs, including a 38% cacao Milk Chocolate bar and a range of dark chocolate expressions.
- Hot chocolate — instant hot chocolate mixes in Original Milk and Original Dark, including a Family Size 800 g format built for multi-serving households.
- Baking products — cocoa powder and baking chocolate for from-scratch kitchen use.
- Bulk products — larger-format cane sugar and cocoa formats for the natural-channel bulk aisle.
- Gifts and more — curated multi-SKU bundles that step a first-time shopper through the range.
The centre of gravity is the chocolate-and-cocoa system: the bars, hot chocolate, and cocoa powder all draw on the same producer-cooperative supply of fair trade certified cocoa. The sugar in every SKU is also drawn from La Siembra's cooperative-sourced cane sugar supply, which means the fair trade claim on the package covers the two most consequential ingredients rather than one.
What “fair trade” means on this label
Fair trade is a category with a real definition. Fairtrade International, the certification body behind the Fairtrade mark, defines fair trade as trade built on longer-term contracts, producer-cooperative sourcing, a minimum price floor, a social premium paid to the producer cooperative on top of the price, and independent audit of both the supply chain and the labour conditions inside it. Camino's operational fit sits closer to that definition than most brands that borrow the language, because the certification requirement was baked into the business model at incorporation rather than added later.
La Siembra states on its about page that it works with more than 25 producer cooperatives across 14 countries and supports approximately 47,500 small-scale family farmers. Those figures are useful because they are countable: number of producer cooperatives, number of farmers, number of countries. That is a structurally different claim from generic sustainability language, and it can be checked against the certification bodies and the supply-chain audit trail.
The cooperative also lists organic certification across a large share of its cocoa and sugar SKUs, which means the fair trade claim is layered with an agronomic claim rather than presented as the only story on the package.
What worker-owned actually means for the brand
La Siembra Co-operative is worker-owned. That is not a marketing phrase; it is a legal structure. Ownership sits with the worker-members of the cooperative, and governance runs through a democratic model in which decisions on the direction of the business are made by the workers rather than by outside equity holders. The practical outcome for a consumer is that Camino does not answer to a private equity owner, a family-office board, or an acquirer looking for an exit multiple.
The cooperative recently moved into a 10,000 square foot warehouse in downtown Ottawa, which serves as the operating base for blending, packing, and shipping the Canadian retail line. That physical footprint matters because it is where the fair-trade certified cocoa, sugar, and vanilla imported from the cooperative's producer partners is turned into finished chocolate, hot chocolate, and baking products for the Canadian market.
La Siembra's mission language is unusually direct for a CPG brand: “Let's build a better food system. One that respects people and our planet. One where your food choices bring positive change.” That framing sits above the product line rather than under it, and every Camino package reads as an argument for that food system rather than a standard marketing pitch for a chocolate SKU.
The retail footprint
Camino's Canadian retail footprint runs primarily through the natural channel, cooperative grocers, and independent grocery, with online availability at camino.ca and well.ca. Fastest path to purchase in 2026 is direct at camino.ca, which stocks the full catalogue with Canada-wide shipping. For an in-store confirmation, the camino.ca store locator is the authoritative source; retail SKU rotation around the baking and holiday windows in November and December historically expands availability into a wider set of mainstream grocers.
Bulk formats (larger cane sugar and cocoa packs) are typically easier to find in food cooperatives and natural-channel bulk aisles than in mainstream grocery. The Family Size 800 g hot chocolate is a common natural-channel SKU heading into the colder months.
For a related Maple Made spotlight from another Canadian brand whose sustainability claim is structural rather than a marketing overlay, see Maple Made: LOOP Mission, the Montreal upcycled juice brand.
Questions this guide answers
- What is Camino?
- Camino is the consumer chocolate and baking brand of La Siembra Co-operative, a Canadian worker-owned cooperative founded in 1999 and headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario. La Siembra pioneered the first fair trade certified cocoa, chocolate, and sugar in North America in 2002. Camino's product line includes chocolate bars, instant hot chocolate mixes, cocoa powder, cane sugar, and baking staples, all sourced from producer cooperatives.
- Where is Camino headquartered?
- Camino, the retail brand of La Siembra Co-operative, is headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The cooperative recently moved into a 10,000 square foot warehouse in downtown Ottawa. La Siembra operates as a worker-owned, democratically-run cooperative rather than a founder-owned company.
- Who owns Camino?
- Camino is not owned by a single founder or an outside company. Camino is the retail brand of La Siembra Co-operative, Inc., a Canadian worker-owned cooperative founded in 1999. Ownership sits with the worker-members of the cooperative, and decisions run through a democratic governance model. That is a materially different ownership structure from most CPG brands, and it is why every Camino package carries the cooperative's language rather than a founder's name.
- What fair trade certifications does Camino carry?
- Camino products carry Fairtrade certification. La Siembra Co-operative pioneered the first fair trade certified cocoa, chocolate, and sugar in North America in 2002, which pre-dates the mainstream retail rollout of fair trade branding in Canadian grocery. Many Camino SKUs are also certified organic.
- Where does Camino source its cocoa and sugar?
- La Siembra Co-operative sources cocoa, sugar, and vanilla directly from producer cooperatives, not from open-market brokers. On its about page, La Siembra states that it works with more than 25 producer cooperatives across 14 countries and supports approximately 47,500 small-scale family farmers. That direct-to-coop supply model is why Camino can quote a specific farmer count rather than general sustainability language.
- What products does Camino make?
- Camino's current retail catalogue at camino.ca includes chocolate bars (including a 38% cacao Milk Chocolate bar), instant hot chocolate mixes in Original Milk and Original Dark (with a Family Size 800 g format), cocoa powder, cane sugar, and bulk baking staples. There are also gift bundles and wholesale sizes. Full SKU list and current pricing live at camino.ca/products/.
- Is Camino Canadian?
- Yes. Camino is the brand of La Siembra Co-operative, a Canadian worker-owned cooperative headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario. Chocolate and baking products are branded, blended, packed, and shipped from La Siembra's Ottawa warehouse. The raw ingredients (cocoa, cane sugar, vanilla) are sourced from producer cooperatives in Latin America, Africa, and Asia through the cooperative's direct-trade supply chain.
- Where can I buy Camino products?
- Direct at camino.ca/products/. Online at well.ca in Canada. In-store, Camino products rotate through Canadian natural-channel grocers, food coops, and independent grocers. The camino.ca store locator is the fastest way to check current retail stockists by postal code.
- What is La Siembra Co-operative?
- La Siembra Co-operative is the Canadian worker-owned cooperative that owns and runs the Camino brand. It was founded in 1999 in Ottawa, Ontario. La Siembra's mission language centres on equitable trade, cooperative-to-cooperative sourcing, and building a food system that respects both people and the planet. La Siembra was the first North American organisation to certify fair trade cocoa, chocolate, and sugar (2002).
- How is Camino different from other fair trade chocolate brands?
- Two structural differences. First, Camino is not a for-profit brand that added a fair trade certification on the label; it is the retail arm of a worker-owned cooperative whose original 1999 business plan was fair trade sourcing. Second, its sourcing structure is cooperative-to-cooperative — La Siembra buys from producer cooperatives, not from open-market brokers — which is why the brand can name specific farmer partners and the number of producer coops in the supply chain rather than issue a generic sustainability statement.
Bottom line
Camino is one of the clearest examples in Canadian CPG of a fair trade claim built into the ownership structure rather than added on top of a finished product. La Siembra Co-operative certified the first fair trade cocoa, chocolate, and sugar in North America in 2002, and every Camino SKU on shelf today traces back to that supply chain: producer-cooperative sourced cocoa and sugar, worker-owned Canadian cooperative packaging them in Ottawa, and a mission statement about the food system printed where a founder's name would normally go. If you want to taste that supply chain, start with the 38% cacao Milk Chocolate bar or the Family Size Original Milk hot chocolate at camino.ca/products.
camino.ca
Browse the full Camino catalogue: chocolate bars, instant hot chocolate (including the Family Size 800 g), cocoa powder, cane sugar, and bulk baking staples. Order direct or use the store locator to find current in-store stockists across Canada.