Cocoa
Almost seventy percent of the world’s cocoa is produced by 2.6 million smallholders in West Africa. Most of them live in poverty, their yields are low and they use outdated farming methods that exhaust the soil. Tropical rainforests have been felled in the quest for fertile land. It is therefore crucial that sustainable production methods are adopted. Leading cocoa manufacturers such as Mars and traders like Cargill are aware of this need and have committed themselves to responsibly produced cocoa.
Cocoa programme: breaking the negative spiral
To meet the growing global demand for cocoa and the need to produce sustainably, Solidaridad assists producer organizations in making the transition to people and environmentally friendly farming. Our cocoa programme offers farmers a way out of the negative spiral of poor farming methods, exhausted soils, low yields and low revenues. Local partners provide technical expertise to help farmers improve their production techniques to increase yields, grow higher quality cocoa and earn higher incomes.
Initial results from four pilot projects in Ivory Coast show that training farmers in sustainable farming techniques leads to higher quality cocoa beans and an increase in incomes of up to 25%. These techniques also considerably reduce adverse impacts on the environment. At the other end of the supply chain, Solidaridad is working on market development and raising consumer awareness.
Initial results from four pilot projects in Ivory Coast show that training farmers in sustainable farming techniques leads to higher quality cocoa beans and an increase in incomes of up to 25%. These techniques also considerably reduce adverse impacts on the environment. At the other end of the supply chain, Solidaridad is working on market development and raising consumer awareness.
Impact: numbers of certified farmers rising rapidly
Solidaridad works with a growing number of big market players in the cocoa programme – Ahold, Barry Callebaut, Cargill, Mars and Nestlé to name just a few. In 2009, these companies, Solidaridad and several other NGO’s agreed on the Utz Certified standard for sustainable cocoa. By the end of that year about 3600 cocoa producers were being trained to produce sustainably and become certified. The first 5000 tonnes of Utz Certified cocoa reached Amsterdam in November 2009 and by mid-2011 around 100,000 Utz certified farmers were producing more than 70,000 megatonnes of certified cocoa a year.
History and prospects of the cocoa programme
| Start of the cocoa programme | 2007 |
| Main issues | poverty, environmental degradation, social issues such as child labour, training, organzing and empowering farmers |
| Countries | Ghana, Ivory Coast, Indonesia, Ecuador, Vietnam, Nigeria, Cameroon |
| Partners | Cargill, ECOM, Mars, Ahold, Nestlé, Utz Certified |
| Donors | Dutch Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH), Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, private parties |
Outlook
In the next five years the cocoa programme will focus on:
- expanding the programme in the major cocoa producing countries, reaching out to a minimum of 400,000 farmers;
- increasing the market share to 15%-20% of global cocoa production;
- training producers to increase productivity and improve farm management, organizing farmers and enabling acccess to finance;
- develop models for rehabilitation and intensification moving farmers from 400kg average yield to 1000 kg.
New partnerships
Investments are needed to reach 400,000 farmers in 2015 for training in Good Agricultural Practices and organisational development. Credit is needed to give farmers access to finance and be able to provide inputs. New partnerships with local and international universities, banks and input providers need to be developed.
Cases
We offer
Solidaridad aims at a sustainable and fair cocoa chain, from farmer to consumer. The organization consists of a worldwide network of regional expertise centres and cooperates with local partners. Together we deliver the following services:
Our services in the Cocoa programme
- Training farmers in farming techniques that have less negative impact on people and the environment and lead to better quality and higher yields.
- Supporting producer organizations through capacity building and organizational strengthening.
- Assisting producer organizations to get access to means of production, finance and markets.
- Supporting agricultural producer organizations and industrial producer companies to qualify for social and environmental certification standards.
- Developing certification standards for sustainable production and fair trade (such as Fair Trade and UTZ CERTIFIED). And facilitating cooperation between standards to make it as easy as possible for farmers to participate.
Results
Some of the key results in Solidaridad's Cocoa programme:
- UTZ CERTIFIED and Solidaridad manage to interest an increasing number of big market players in their Cocoa programme. Involved are: Ahold, Barry Callebaut, Cargill, Ecom Agroindustrial, Heinz Benelux/Koninklijke de Ruijter BV, Mars, Nestlé, Armajaro Trading Limited, Ludwig Schokolade GmbH &Co. KG, Chocolat Frey, Baronie – de Heer BV, Dobla BV and Jamin. In collaboration with these companies and with Oxfam and WWF, a standard for sustainable cocoa production was developed in 2009.
- By the end of 2009 about 3600 producers are in training to become certified.
- The first 5000 tonnes UTZ CERTIFIED cocoa reached Amsterdam in November 2009.
- Together with Mars, Solidaridad started the project Certification+, aimed at increasing productivity and quality and improvement of the lives of cocoa farmers.
- Initial indications in 4 pilot projects in Ivory Coast show that training farmers in sustainable farming techniques has led to an increase of income by 25% and higher quality cocoa beans.