The Rainforest Alliance certification platform has called for more support for smallholder cocoa farmers to ensure they are not unintentionally excluded from the EU market under the new deforestation regulations.
Achieving sustainable growth in the cocoa sector will be at the forefront of those taking part or visiting Amsterdam Cocoa Week in February where two important conferences are back-to-back and under one roof.
Apart from the positive impact on the planet - potentially preventing millions of tonnes of fruit waste – cacao fruit opens up new categories after the pulp, juice, and powder from the cocoa pod are used, according to latest research.
The World Cocoa Foundation’s Partnership Meeting promises two days of busy high-level discussions when leading industry figures gather in Amsterdam from 6 to 7 February. ConfectioneryNews is the official media partner and shall be reporting live from...
The Surucuá community in Brazil's state of Pará is the first to receive an Amazonian Creative Laboratory, a compact mobile biofactory designed to help kick-start the Amazon’s bioeconomy to process, package and sell bean-to-bar chocolate and similar...
In a first for both KitKat and Nestlé Confectionery in the UK and Ireland, the dark chocolate bar is made with cocoa mass sourced from farmers and their families enrolled in Nestlé’s cocoa income accelerator programme.
Since the World Cocoa Foundation’s last Partnership Meeting in Brussels at the end of 2022, the organisation has undergone significant internal changes – but its mission remains the same – to ‘create a thriving and equitable cocoa sector.’ After skipping...
Agrifood research recognises Europe’s efforts to boost supply chain traceability with robust regulations and technological advancements, yet more can be done to enhance its capabilities.
The European Union, the largest market for cocoa from West Africa, will begin implementing its new regulation this year on deforestation-free products that require companies selling commodities, including cocoa, to prove they have not caused deforestation...
Spurred on by a drive to pursue positive impact and leave the corporate world, four founders came together to launch their Mediterranean cacao-free chocolate brand.
ConfectioneryNews will be presenting a special live webinar on Tuesday 23 January 24 at 17:00Paris / 10:00AM Chicago to discuss the new requirements for market access for cocoa and chocolate suppliers into the European Union.
Attempting to comply with the numerous levels of certification imposed on farmers, suppliers, and producers in terms of cost and bureaucracy has been described as ‘administration hell’ by one cocoa cooperative director, who spends up to 80% of his time...
As an early adopter of the “triple bottom line” framework, the premium confection company Endangered Species Chocolate has been “doing well by doing good” for 30 years by responsibly sourcing ingredients, supporting fair trade, prioritizing sustainability...
As many know, the cocoa industry is sometimes opaque and complex. Still, confessed chocolate-lover Jon Trask, who is also CEO of Dimitra, says his company's recently developed Blockchain Deforestation Platform could provide a solution to help farmers...
The Swiss Platform for Sustainable Cocoa (SWISSCO) has published its report on the results from 15 value chain projects in eight countries, generating insights into approaches to tackle the various socio-economic and environmental sustainability challenges...
To’ak Chocolate routinely charges over $300 for a single bar of chocolate, which is claimed to be the most expensive chocolate in the world. The brand justifies its price because it is responsibly sourced from a cacao variety, Ancient Nacional, native...
Food sustainability actions need to transition away from future aims to real-world change processes to help the global food system reach its targets, new research suggests.
The World Cocoa Foundation (WCF), in collaboration with IDH and key government officials, highlighted significant strides in sustainable forest conservation efforts from the chocolate industry and the success of the Cocoa & Forests Initiative (CFI),...
Large chocolate and cocoa companies, including multinationals including Mars, Ferrero, Mondelēz, Hershey, Nestlé, and traders like Barry Callebaut and Cargill, are not paying prices that allow cocoa farmers to earn a living. This is the conclusion of...
Luker Chocolate is celebrating the completion of The Cacao Effect, a five-year initiative that the company said positively impacted over 6,000 rural families in Colombia. The closing event was held on 24 November 2023 in Bogotá, Colombia, and showcased...
More than 30 ingredients specialists are set to attend ProSweets Cologne, the supplier fair that runs along side ISM sweets and snacks trade show, to offer natural and sustainable solutions that contain less sugar or carry a clean label declaration.
After decades of ‘very little’ innovation by heritage brands, is butter (and its plant-based counterparts) having a moment? FoodNavigator investigates.
Barry Callebaut, the world’s largest supplier of cocoa and chocolate, says it ‘remains steadfast in its advocacy of policies to make sustainable chocolate the norm as it releases its seventh Forever Chocolate progress report (covering fiscal year 2022-23).
To mark the opening of COP28, the UN Climate Conference (30 November to Tues 12 December 2023), held this year in Dubai, the Rainforest Alliance, calls for substantial funding increase from governments, financial institutions, and private sector in support...
Mars Incorporated has launched a first-of-its-kind digital and out-of-home campaign that ‘reuses’ fan-favourite advertisements, giving them a second life and claiming the new messages bring hope and progress around climate action.
As part of Mars Inc.’s strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the confectionery major is optimising product recipes to include more environmentally friendly ingredients.
The cocoa and chocolate making industry has been warned that cocoa stocks languishing in EU warehouses during the 18-month transition period leading up to the European Union’s Deforestation law that kicks in at the end of December 2024 may have to be...
Fine Chocolate Industry Association (FCIA) has launched a new membership drive with special incentives as it seeks to attract more craft chocolate companies and grow its impact.
Increased scrutiny of environmental sustainability claims by regulators and competitors has many brands turning to third-party certifications to reassure consumers about claims’ veracity and to protect against litigation – but recent movements in the...
Sustainable craft chocolate stockists Cocoa Runners is celebrating its tenth anniversary by hosting the Christmas Craft Chocolate Fair in London on 2 and 3 December, at Fidelio, a music venue, cafe and restaurant.
‘Aligning for Global Action’ is the theme for The World Cocoa Foundation’s 2024 Partnership Meeting, the leading global industry event in sustainable cocoa, which this year takes place in the Beurs van Berlage (Old Stock Exchange) in Amsterdam from 6...
The Cocoa and Forests Initiative (CFI) is set to present updates on the industry’s commitment to eliminate deforestation and restore degraded forests at COP28, the United Nations Climate Change Conference, which will be held this year in Dubai from 30...
Barry Callebaut has been ranked in the 1st percentile in the management of ESG risks in both the Food Product and Packaged Food companies by Morningstar Sustainalytics.
Global organisation Fairtrade is working to ensure farmers receive just and equitable working conditions. A new campaign, led by two jurisdictions, is reasserting these efforts.
With enforcement of a new deforestation law on the horizon, stakeholders along the food supply chain and working to ensure compliance. We look at the new tools and services being developed that promise enhanced traceability and due diligence.
The Dutch capital and largest cocoa port in the world is preparing to celebrate cocoa and chocolate during February by becoming an important hub for business and for innovative thinking on the sustainability of the cocoa value chains.
The VOICE network, publishers of the influential Cocoa Barometer, which calls to account the chocolate industry on child labour and other sustainability issues, has issued a statement following reports in ConfectioneryNews and other media, on allegations...
Fairtrade International has announced a new partnership with Satelligence to scale up satellite monitoring of forested areas and farms to its globally certified cocoa and coffee producer organisations to meet new EU regulations.
The International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) has put a call-out for bids to host the 3rd edition of the International Symposium on Cocoa Research (ISCR).
The African Platform for Sustainable Cocoa, which brings together civil society cocoa platforms from Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana, has issued a statement alleging the cocoa industry is refusing to pay at the current market price plus the Living Income...
Luxury UK chocolatier and cacao grower Hotel Chocolat has launched two new chocolate bars, pledging 100% of the bar sales to fund a ‘better way for cacao farming’, as part of the brand’s drive for positive change for nature and farming families.
There is widespread public support for a universal eco-label to be introduced for food products, with more than two-thirds of consumers across Europe saying they would use such a tool to help them make more sustainable choices, according to a new pan-European...
Julia Ocampo, vice president of cacao sourcing & sustainability at Luker Chocolate, tells Food Manufacture a little about herself and her role in our next instalment of the exclusive series 'All in a Day's Work'.
Consumers are adapting their attitudes about food to a changing climate and aiming for more sustainable eating habits, research in Tetra Pak’s 2023 Index suggests. The research also indicated that consumers are gravitating towards healthier products,...
The European Union has urged Cote d’Ivoire to ramp up its efforts regarding the traceability of its cocoa if the country is going to meet the criteria of the EU deforestation law that comes into effect in January 2025.
A recent article in National Geographic described York as ‘England’s chocolate capital’. The city was home to two major confectionery companies, Terry’s founded in 1767 and Rowntree’s in 1862, the inventor of KitKat, which is still produced today at the...
While the vanilla industry is seeing low prices and low demand this year, Virginia Dare’s partnerships with 1,300 growers in Madagascar are focused on fortifying communities’ livelihoods through social, environmental and economic initiatives that help...
One of the major challenges facing the premium chocolate industry is the practice of ‘greenwashing’ where consumers are deceived by meaningless icons and false claims on labels purporting that the brand is committed to a responsible and transparent supply...
IFIS Sustainability a cutting-edge, free Abstracting and Indexing (A&I) database that curates the latest scientific research at the intersection of food and sustainability, has launched a new digital tool providing food innovators access to the latest...