The world’s largest fine flavor cocoa plantation Hacienda Victoria says big industry players such as Lindt and Barry Callebaut are showing strong interest in sourcing single estate fine flavor cocoa from Ecuador.
Three class action lawsuits brought in California allege Mars, Nestlé and Hershey use child labor to produce their best-selling chocolate brands. The firms say they are tackling the issue and will fight the cases.
Fourteen genomes of Colombian Fino de Aroma cocoa have been discovered and analyzed in research that could lead to unique flavors for the chocolate market.
‘You can’t say you’re sustainable when you’re not reaching the majority,’ says cocoa farmer body
The International Cocoa Farmers Organization has called on the chocolate industry to directly source from cocoa farmers and support efforts to reach 90% of farmers it says have been neglected in cocoa sustainability plans.
Perilous working conditions for sugarcane growers in Central America have claimed around 20,000 lives in the past decade and supply chain advisor Solidaridad says the food and drink industry can no longer ignore the epidemic.
The Norwegian national investment fund has cut ties with four major Asian companies, citing the risk of ‘severe environmental damage’ as a result of palm oil plantations.
The cocoa and chocolate industry acknowledges it must do more to combat cocoa child labor after the number of kids working in hazardous conditions on cocoa farms in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire rises 18%, a report from Tulane University shows.
A sustainable logo is known to add value to a brand – so why are so many manufacturers not showing their Fairtrade, organic or sustainable credentials?
Financial agri services group Rabobank predicts cocoa futures will remain above $3,000 per metric ton until after Côte D’Ivoire’s October general election.
PepsiCo’s new report on its sugarcane supply chain in Brazil and the impact it has on land rights has been welcomed with caution and some critique by Oxfam.
Cocoa grinds in North America have fallen 9% in the second quarter and remain flat in Europe as cocoa processors lose profitability and developed market economies harm chocolate consumption.
A growing trend for sustainability certifications and on pack ‘branding’ could mean manufacturers are missing the wider point of sustainability issues and may confuse consumers so much they no longer care.
Euromonitor International expects more chocolate makers will take vertical control of their supply chains by acquiring commodity suppliers as prices continue to climb.
Cocoa farmers are largely excluded from decision making in the chocolate industry’s efforts to boost cocoa productivity but have a right to be heard, says a new international farmer’s organization aiming to stand up for disaffected voices.
The National Confectioners Association has hit back at U.S. senators it says mischaracterized the chocolate industry’s efforts on preventing labor rights abuses on cocoa farms in West Africa. But some Fair Trade chocolate companies say industry is being...
U.S. chocolate manufacturers would forgo buying cocoa from Côte d’Ivoire if a case against three major cocoa processors succeeds, warns a dissenting judge.
Stricter voluntary guidelines on deforestation, peatland development and indigenous people’s rights will strengthen the sustainable palm oil certification, says the RSPO.
The industry-backed platform CocoaAction has partnered with the Jacob’s Foundation for a $52m education program for cocoa growing communities in Côte d’Ivoire, where the majority of young people fail to complete primary school.
The chocolate industry can curtail extreme poverty in the cocoa sector by implementing higher prices that can be passed from consumers to farmers, says Puratos Grand-Place.
Special edition: Beyond 2020 - The future of sustainable cocoa
Asia is poised to help meet rising demand for cocoa, but its key producer Indonesia faces quality concerns and its government lacks incentive to grow the sector.
Special Edition: Beyond 2020 - the future of sustainable cocoa
The chocolate industry must ramp up support for good agricultural practices on existing cocoa farmland or else rainforest will be chopped down to make way for new plantations and it may face supply constraints, say stakeholders.
Special edition: Beyond 2020 - The future of sustainable cocoa
Rising temperatures could seriously change where cocoa is grown in the next half-century and global output could be threatened if the chocolate industry does nothing to protect its key crop.
Italy’s confectionery major Ferrero has purchased almost 700 hectares of fertile agricultural land controlled by Serbian agricultural company Aleksa Santic for €7.95m ($8.64m).
Dispatches from Asia Choco Cocoa Congress in Singapore
Vietnamese state-owned companies plan to convert some coffee and rubber plantations to cocoa, delivering a significant boost to the country’s annual output, says Vietnam’s principle cocoa buyer Puratos Grand-Place.
A single, unifying sustainability standard would be helpful for consumers – but it’s a long way off, says Organic Monitor president and founder Amarjit Sahota.
Multinationals chocolate companies and the public and private sector will come together this week to assess the future of cocoa sustainability in Asia and how to capitalize on rising chocolate demand in the reg
Illegal cocoa farming is an increasing threat on primate populations in Côte d’Ivoire’s protected areas, say researchers in the journal Tropical Conservation Science.
Chocolate companies should buy fine flavor cocoa directly from growers and pay greater premiums to expand the premium chocolate segment, says artisan firm Duffy’s Chocolate.
Nestlé has implemented a child labor prevention system that goes further to detect and stamp out the practice than existing methods, according to its implementing partner the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI), which says it could become the industry...
Mondelēz will bear the brunt of any potential financial sanctions if a charge of manipulating wheat prices brought yesterday by The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) succeeds.
By Antoine Boudib, Managing Director, Akuafo Adamfo Marketing Company Ltd, a Finatrade Company
Cocoa buying companies are the main intermediaries between the chocolate industry and farmers and should not be forgotten in the pursuit of sustainable cocoa, writes one of the largest licensed cocoa buyers in West Africa Finatrade.
The European Union is a major consumer of food commodities sourced from illegally deforested land, according to a new report from Brussels-based NGO Fern.
The chocolate industry must commit to longer sourcing agreements if it expects farmers to be able to invest in cocoa productivity and quality, according to a leading farming cooperative in Côte d’Ivoire.
Chocolate manufacturers have made great strides in cocoa sustainability, but are fixated on boosting productivity and can do far more to ensure cocoa farmers receive a living income, according to a report by NGOs.
Divine Chocolate says multinationals are escaping fuller Fairtrade commitments under the certification body’s new rules. But Fairtrade says its sourcing program is the only way to reach cocoa farmers at scale.
