KAKAWA.. The word Kakawa originally comes from the South American Olmec civilization and dates back to roughly 1000 BC. well before the Aztecs and Mayans The Olmec were the first civilization to cultivate cocoa beans and called them Kakawa They grew their cocoa plants on the luscious east coast of Mexico. Much mystery still surrounds these origins¡¦. The arrival of the Spanish Armada lead to the name Kakawa being changed to ¡°Cacao¡± We at Kakawa, we make all of our chocolates with no preservatives or artificial flavours using only the finest natural ingredients. All our products are gluten free.