Our Story

Ghana’s tropical climate is perfect for growing chillies.

Our chillies are grown in fertile, sun-drenched Eastern Ghana. They are handpicked when perfectly ripe then sun-dried in the traditional way, preserving their intense flavour. These chillies are then brought to Scotland where selected artisan producers create our wonderful range of sauces, dips and jams.

But that is only part of our story.

Schoolyard Chillies is a social enterprise that exists to provide you with some of the finest chilli products in the world and help some of the people of Ghana improve their difficult lives. Schoolyard Chillies works with small, independent farmers. We provide them with seeds at affordable prices, access to agricultural training, and a guaranteed route to market for their chillies. In return, we ask that no children are removed from school to work on their farms. This is a big issue in parts of Ghana and other African countries.

By buying our sauces, condiments and jams you are not only going to enjoy a wonderful chilli product, you are helping provide stability and opportunity in one of the poorest regions in the world. This stability allows farmers to keep their children in school and through better education people are able to access better careers, and improve the community they live in. This is no hand-out, this is simply social responsibility in action. Helping people help themselves in a sustainable way.

Any profits made are reinvested in education which allows children to remain in school full time through Schoolyard Chillies. It is our firmly held belief that commerce should benefit both parties, by choosing to purchase Schoolyard Chillies you are getting a wonderful, authentic, sun ripened chilli product, safe in the knowledge that you are also helping to improve the lives of some of the most vulnerable children in the world.


Scottish Fair Trade ForumScottish Food and Drink