Aruntam Sensory Chocolate
San Giuliano Milanese, Italy
Pia Rivera founded Aruntam Chocolate in 2017, but her journey into the world of fine chocolate began years earlier. Born and raised in a small town in the Amazonia region of Ecuador, Pia's path led her to Italy, where she built a successful flower import business in 2002. It was during a 2012 visit to a flower fair in Ecuador that she discovered a chocolate stand – a moment that would transform her life's work and eventually lead her family into the world of fine chocolate.
Italian Chocolate Maker
The word Aruntam comes from a native tribe in Pia's home region and means "spirit of courage." It's this spirit that gave her the courage to learn everything about chocolate from the ground up, to invest in her own production facility after winning nine international awards in 2018, and to transform her warehouse into the certified organic factory in San Giuliano Milanese that exists today. Pia is the heart of this company, following each step through the supply chain, from sourcing the raw materials and cacao beans through the entire processing, and creating all recipes and products with meticulous care.
Today, Aruntam is truly a family affair. Pia's sister, Lorena Rivera, moved from Spain to Milan in 2009 and has become an essential part of the business, managing everything from accounting to online sales and shipment preparation. Pia's husband, Pier Vincenzo Malanchini, joined the chocolate venture in 2017 and now handles the technical side of production – roasting and grinding the cacao beans, operating machinery, and maintaining the equipment that brings Pia's recipes to life. Together, this close-knit team ensures that every bar reflects the passion and dedication that defines Aruntam.
Award Winning Chocolate
Aruntam takes great care to preserve the natural flavors of their ingredients, selecting only the best cacao beans and creating chocolate that is minimally processed to capture its true essence. This bean-to-bar company has won over 60 awards – from both the International Chocolate Awards and the Academy of Chocolate Awards – for their commitment to quality and craftsmanship.
We stock two different Aruntam Chocolate collections: "Uncommon Cacao" is a single origin collection consisting of dark, milk and white chocolate bars, and the "Italian Lifestyle" series focuses on pairing chocolate with high quality, Italian ingredients. Both chocolate collections focus on harmony of flavours and elevating the beautiful notes of exceptional cacao.
“The cacao we use respects the Direct & Eco Trade philosophy, where the agreements are directly concluded with producers in the countries of origin. In this way the independent development of the communities that cultivate this wonderful fruit is promoted. This system allows us to have total control of the channeling system of our most important raw material, and it is the same philosophy we try to maintain with all ingredients used in our production”
—Pia Rivera
Aruntam’s bars are Certified Organic and the chocolate is all Raw-Minimally Processed, reflecting their values of protecting the environment, respecting the people, and devotion to preserving quality ingredients. From Pia's Amazonian roots to the family workshop in Milan, every bar tells the story of craftsmanship, connection, and the finest cacao.