British & Irish Chocolate Makers
This is a comprehensive list of all of the 52 businesses currently making chocolate from the cocoa bean inside the UK and Ireland, as at May 2025.
To be in the list they must currently be selling the chocolate they make from the bean.
The list does not include companies who have chocolate made on their behalf, in or outside of the UK, only those that own the machines to process beans into chocolate. There are some great companies that don’t fit this description, maybe I’ll write about them another day.
There are many great bean to bar chocolates made abroad available in the UK. They’re also not in this list.
An important note before you make any purchases:
Some of the makers in the list may also buy in chocolate from other companies as well as making some of their own chocolate. This is more common for companies also making filled chocolates. Where I know the details I’ve mentioned this in the description, but it’s always worth asking before you order if it isn’t clear.
If you see any errors or know of any I’ve missed, please let me know via this contact form.
Confused about what a Chocolate Maker is vs a Chocolatier? I’ve written about it here.
Finally:
If you care about great chocolate you might like to know that my curated London maps all have a filter where you can just view the bakeries that use great quality, ethical chocolate in their baked goods.
Here are the Irish and British Chocolate Makers, in alphabetical order:
Barber's
Newton Abbot, Devon
Founder Michael worked in a bakery and trained for three years in culinary school and worked some more before moving to Devon to open his chocolate factory. All of the packaging is biodegradable (plastic-free!)
Bare Bones Chocolate
Glasgow
Glasgow-based company making truly fantastic chocolate that you'll also find available as a hot chocolate in great coffee shops in the UK. They have a big shop in Glasgow now too and were featured on a program with Rick Stein.
BeanCraft Chocolate
Bradford-on-Avon
Founded by wife and husband team Nicky and Tom Couch in 2019, BeanCraft make a truly excellent range of single origin chocolate bars, including a 2023 3-star Gold Award-winning milk 55% chocolate bar with beans from Sierra Nevada in Colombia. They also make excellent single-origin chocolate-covered orangettes and chunky-coated hazelnut clusters.
Bullion
Sheffield
Bean to bar makers in Sheffield with a factory, cafe and bar. You can also get their bars and excellent brownies online. The 50% milk chocolate was a hit in one of my online community tastings in 2020.
Cacoa Elora
Alfreton, UK
Founder John Cowings recently stood as Labour candidate in his local region in Derbyshire. He makes a range of single origin bars in colourful packaging.
Caerwent Craft Chocolate
Caldicot, Wales
This chocolate maker in South Wales is new to me. They also sell chocolate-covered honeycomb.
Cenu Cacao
Leamington Spa, UK
You can watch the chocolate being made in their bean-to-bar chocolate shop in Royal Leamington.
Chocolarder
Cornwall
Many origins, some truffles and some unique flavoured bars including their Again bars with inclusions of products that would otherwise have gone to waste - like coffee grounds and unsold croissants.
Chocolate Tree
near Edinburgh
Wife and husband team Ali and Friederike were the first Scottish Bean to Bar Makers, based just outside Edinburgh. Their Belize origin bars are some of my favourites, as is the gianduja bar. They released a Whole Fruit Chocolate Bar (where dried cocoa fruit replaces the sugar) in 2024.
Coco Caravan
Stroud, Gloucestershire, UK
Vegan chocolate made by Coco Caravan in Stroud since 2013. Their chocolate bars are made from organic, direct or fair-traded cacao and sweetened with coconut sugar. From Thursday to Saturday you can visit their Cacao House in Stroud for hot chocolate and more. 2 Bedford Street - Stroud - GL5 1AY. Well behaved dogs are welcome.
Cocoa Retreat
Penshurst, Kent
As the others on this list: bean-to-bar, single-origin chocolate bars. Made in Penshurst. They also sell chocolate-coated, Kent-grown Cobnut Clusters.
Contour Chocolate
London
Former chef James works exclusively with Nicaraguan beans to create beautifully and uniquely presented discs of chocolate, including some uniquely flavoured ones. In 2024 he launched hot chocolate as well.
Darkroom Chocolate
Norfolk
Natalie and Mike used to make buns that would sell out. Then they decided to start making chocolate. On Saturdays from 9-1pm they open their North Walsham factory as a cafe. They produce bars and hot chocolate flakes.
Dormouse Chocolate
Manchester
In Manchester, Isobel and Karen make some of the most sought after bars in the country. Their chocolate subscription where they share their experiments has a waiting list and rightly so - this is where bars such as "egg on toast" (no actual egg but peach flavoured white chocolate on milk chocolate with sourdough) and "pancake day" with maple sugar and feuilletine appear. Many of their core range are award-winning. You can visit their atelier in Manchester: Unit O, Deansgate Mews, Manchester M3 4EN.
Duffy's
Cleethorpes
2011 Academy of Chocolate Golden Bean Award (this is a big deal - it means the best of all the bars entered from all around the world). There have been plenty of Gold Award winners since then, too. One of the first Bean to Bar Makers in Britain. The raspberry bar is incredible but the single origins are also superb.
East Chocolate
London
Founded in India in 2016 and now based in Hackney, East Chocolate source their beans from a co-operative in Kerala and their cocoa butter from an organic chocolate maker in Tamil Nadu.
Eonce
East London
Founders Julia and Jose were both born and raised in the south of Spain. They met at culinary school in Seville and after working at Mast Brothers, one of the early chocolate makers, based in Brooklyn, Julia decided she wanted to open her own chocolate company. A few years later, she did.
Explore Chocolate
Scotland
Bars and bon bons. They have a shop: 47b Atholl Rd, Pitlochry PH16 5BX.
Firetree
Bars made from beans grown in volcanic soil. Founded by a group of men with decades of experience working in “big chocolate”.
Forever Cacao
Wales
All of Pablo's bars are made from unroasted cocoa beans in Wales. Everything is vegan.
Gatos Chocolate
Sussex
Wife and husband team based in Stonegate in Sussex who started making chocolate in lockdown. The names comes from their passion for cats. Gatos is Spanish for cats. There are lots of flavoured bars, as well as single origin, and some vegan milk chocolate bars made with cashews.
Gemini Chocolate
East Yorkshire
Made by former musician Sam in Beverley in East Yorkshire using Peruvian cocoa beans and palm sugar.
Harris & James
Suffolk
A lovely and small independent chain of chocolate shops across East Anglia selling filled chocolates, ice cream and bars. Some of the chocolate is made from the bean.
Hazel Mountain Chocolate
Ireland
Founded in 2014 on the Wild Atlantic Way on the west coast of Ireland. They have a shop in Galway where they sell bars and filled chocolates. You can also book tours of their factory.
Heist
Wales
Bristol-based chocolate company that only sources its beans via Cacao Latitudes from Peru. Home to lots of unique and ever-changing flavours.
Hill St. Chocolate
Essex
Hill St. started as a chocolatier which is still their main focus but a few years ago began making bean to bar which they sell separately as bars whilst - for now - still sourcing their chocolate from others for their filled chocolates. Based in Saffron Walden, Jamie Oliver is a regular customer and featured them on his TV show. It’s great chocolate.
J Cocoa
Brighton
The most sustainable packaging of any bean to bar chocolate maker. Bars and vegan caramels. The caramel bar with multiple sugars (but no flavourings!) is a favourite of mine. The coffee bar is exceptional too. Many are award-winning bars.
Juthan Chocolate
Surrey
The name comes from a combination of Julian and Ethan, the children of founders Karolina - a nutritionist who used to work in UK food manufacturer - and Willem - an IT professional. Launched in 2023.Almost all are flavoured bars.
L'Esterre Chocolate
Warwickshire
Bobbie makes this award-winning and fabulous chocolate in the Cotswolds using beans from her family farm in Grenada.
Land Chocolate
London
Excellent bean to bar chocolate and hot chocolate. There's an oat milk bar for vegans but, if you’re not vegan, don’t miss the caramelised white chocolate with cocoa nibs. Some exciting news coming soon, too.
London Chocolate
London
Fantastic bean to bar chocolate with more than ten origins made in London. They have a gorgeous shop near Marble Arch where they also make filled chocolates, brownies and sometimes other treats and the hot chocolate is fantastic. You’ll find them on my London 2025 Cakes, Cookies & More Map.
Luisa's Vegan Chocolate
Nottingham
Academy of Chocolate's UK Rising Star, Luisa is the first bean to bar maker in Nottingham. Partners with female cocoa growers to make excellent, multi award-winning bars, including some fabulous flavoured ones. She makes a “casholate” with cashews and cacao and a Tigernut M*lk bar, too.
Marshall & Co
Birmingham
Launched in 2021 with six different origin bars. All vegan company.
Mayoy Chocolate
Mayoy means friend in founder Jose’s ancestral Venezuelan language. All of the beans are sourced from Venezuela where they also recently invested in 100 hectares to develop an agroecological and sustainable project with the local community.
NearyNogs
Northern Ireland
Neary Nogs are a wonderful wife and husband team who opened the first bean to bar chocolate company in Northern Ireland. There are some unique - and fabulous - Irish flavours available as well as single-origin bars and some truffles and caramels.
Nibbed Cacao
Ireland
Founded by two women with impressive backgrounds in cheffing, food and nutrition, Nibbed solely produce grated and blocks of 100% cacao (legally without sugar it can’t be called chocolate, but it’s capable of the same texture) for drinks or nibbling.
Nicola's Chocolate
Exeter
A one-woman tiny chocolate factory in Exeter in Devon. Nicola specialises in single origin bars, each with their own unique flavour, but also has some bars with local inclusions like seaweed, too. Previously known as Exe Chocolate, Nicola rebranded in 2025. Do try the rum-infused chocolate.
Pump Street Chocolate
Suffolk
Pump Street Bakery started making chocolate from the bean in 2012 in Orford, Suffolk. Their most famous and popular bars are the very addictive ones that include their bread and other baked products. Occasionally they also sell their baked goods by post. In Orford they have a dedicated chocolate shop, as well as the bakery, and have just opened a studio where they run workshops and events.
Radek's
Bristol
Radek’s main business is in brownies and for this they buy cocoa liquor (100% cacao) from other makers, but they have started experimenting in bean to bar chocolate as well.
Ruby Hue
Bristol
Bristol-based Ruby Hue is run by Ru and Tom. They make excellent bean to bar chocolate in beautiful packaging and sell drinks and baked goods to take away from their factory.
Salcombe Dairy
Devon
After making ice cream for years the dairy decided to turn their hands to chocolate. As you’d expect their vanilla white chocolate bar is very enjoyable. You can visit their chocolate factory shop and café in Salcombe.
Seed Chocolate
Staffordshire
James spent 20 years as an award-winning chef before founding Staffordshire's first bean to bar company. His main focus is workshops, catering and events but he also sells filled chocolates and some bean to bar chocolate.
Seven Hills Chocolate
Bath
Chocolatier and chocolate makers who’ve named their business after the Seven Hills that surround the ancient city of Bath. They make 50 different fresh chocolates and a few bars.
Sin Azucar
Buckinghamshire
A range of bars and brownies made with Ecuadorian and Peruvian beans and coconut sugar and sold at food markets in Oxfordshire or online.
Solkiki
UK
Vegan Owned & Operated. Winner of multiple awards. So many interesting flavours. The white chocolate peanut bar is very moreish.
Superfood Cocoa
London
All of Superfood Cocoa's bars use coconut nectar and lucuma instead of beet or cane sugar. Most bars are made with additional cocoa butter that most chocolate makers purchase separately. Unusually, Silvi presses her own so her bars are fully single-origin. They also sell nibs, whole beans and cacao husk tea.
Table
Liverpool
Wife and husband team Andrea and Remy started Table in 2021. Andrea is a translator and marketer and Remy is a graphic designer who started washing pots in kitchens and graduated to head pastry chef. A perfect combination for a bean to bar chocolate company. I have only tried their 100% bar that belonged to a friend at a recent tasting and it was my favourite of our session of bars from all over the world.
The Proper Chocolate Company
Dublin
Kelli and Patrick Marjoret launched their bean to bar business in 2016. Having lived in San Francisco they’d experienced great craft chocolate already.
Tosier
Suffolk
Tosier chocolate is made in Suffolk in a family-run factory you can visit and enjoy a beverage as well. All their chocolate is vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, and made with no additives, flavourings, lecithin or emulsifier. At their shop they also sell their delicious rochers (Freddy Rocks) and brownies.
Willies Cacao
Devon
Widely available in supermarkets and excellent value for money. Willie's white chocolate is low in sugar and contains no vanilla, unlike most white chocolate you’ll find in the supermarket. It’s very enjoyable They’re consistently experimenting with flavoured bars and have regular offers if you subscribe to their mailing list. Their hot chocolate bags make a great and accessible drink.
York Cocoa Works
York
Founded originally as York Cocoa House by Sophie Jewett in the heart of York making and selling truffles and hot chocolate, the business is now a chocolate factory in a slightly different location that makes from the bean, still sells truffles and hot chocolate, and offers workshops.