Pacific Trade Invest (PTI) NZ has entered into a partnership with Weave Cacao, a Kiwi company with a mission to produce and market the first-ever Pacific couverture chocolate. The product is 100% grown and made in the Pacific, with production based in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.
Among other support activities, PTI NZ will contribute to sponsoring Weave Cacao’s upcoming nationwide Mousse Masters competition, which officially opens for entries on 25 June. Mousse Masters is a one-of-a-kind competition, which, in the words of Weave Cacao, “is designed to captivate the food service industry, showcase the magic of Weave Cacao’s couverture chocolate drops, and celebrate the artistry of New Zealand’s chefs and bakers.”
The idea is to discover the best chocolate mousse recipe in New Zealand (using Pacific couverture chocolate, naturally). More on that later.
The competition is also cleverly designed to get samples of Weave Cacao’s couverture chocolate into the hands of contestants – in both the Pro Chef and Most Promising Young Chef categories. Entrants will receive a supply of the chocolate to apply their culinary skills and creativity to.
Mousse Masters culminates in a grand final, judged by New Zealand’s most famous chef, Peter Gordon, at the Elemental Cooking School, Parnell, Auckland, on 21 October. PTI NZ previously worked with Peter when his restaurant, Homeland, hosted our week-long KAI PASIFIKA festival.
What is couverture chocolate?
In short, couverture chocolate is the top-quality artisan chocolate, free of preservatives, or expanding agents (like milk), and insisted upon by leading chefs, bakers and chocolatiers. It is supplied in the form of drops (or buttons).
As Tesh Hearth, Weaver of Brand & Marketing at Weave Cacao said, “We see Weave Cacao as an opportunity to hero the Pacific’s 2.5 million cacao farmers who have not had access to supplying the premium market before, or been given opportunities to connect with and consume cacao themselves. Cacao is a viable way to address poverty, and with training and access, we are able to make a real difference to their communities. Meanwhile, New Zealand chefs and chocolatiers are able to benefit from an incredible product right on their doorstep rather than relying on African/European supply.”
At this stage of its operation, Weave Cacao is processing cacao beans sourced from Papua New Guinea. It will soon expand into using raw product from other Pacific Island countries, including Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
The project required considerable effort to raise the necessary capital to purchase vital equipment.
On one of her working trips to Papua New Guinea, Oonagh Browne, founder of The Cacao Ambassador, met with Paradise Foods Ltd to present a proposal to contract manufacture in its chocolate factory. This resulted in a win-win for both parties, with Oonagh and her team bringing their expertise in the art of chocolate making, using existing equipment in the factory. This engagement created another level of positive impact – producing couverture chocolate from country-of-origin beans.
Mousse Masters
The upcoming Mousse Masters competition includes specific themes, such as Mousse as Hero; and Weave Cacao Identity. As Tesh explained, mousse should be the dominant feature of the Mousse as Hero theme, while the Weave Cacao Identity theme should highlight the special flavour of Weave Cacao.
Grand finalists will be announced on 13 October 2025. Weave Cacao will provide financial support to all grand finalists.
Celebrating Pasifika culture
On another front, Weave Cacao will be hosting its own stand at Fine Food New Zealand 2025, in Auckland, 29 June–1 July, where Mousse Masters will be promoted.
PTI NZ will promote three other Pacific food suppliers: Inu Noni Juice (Cook Islands), Foods Pacific Ltd (simmer sauces and corned meat from Fiji), and Cibus Foods Limited (premium root crops, kava, palusami and more) at its own stand, to provide much needed support to export-ready companies.
For more on the Weave Cacao story and its mission to produce world-class couverture chocolate exclusively from the Pacific, please visit https://weavecacao.com
