In this exclusive op-ed for ConfectioneryNews by Brett Beach, Co-founder of sustainable chocolate brand Made in Africa (MIA), and Dr Kristy Leissle, a member of CN’s editorial board and the author of numerous books and articles on cocoa and industry politics,...
The International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) has forecast a 230,000-tonne global cocoa deficit in the current 2021-22 season (October-September), up from a previous projection of a deficit of 174,000 tonnes.
Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Mohammad Mahmood Abubakar, has doubled down on the country’s pledge to increase its cocoa production from the present 340,000 tonnes to 500,000 tonnes by 2024.
Cocoa prices closed up on Wednesday (10 August) +35 (+1.48%), and September ICE London cocoa #7 (CAU22) closed up +3 (+0.17%) after support from the sharp sell-off in the dollar, which supported commodity prices in general.
The two world's biggest cocoa producers, Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana, have announced they are raising the price of their beans to help farmers earn a decent living income.
Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana, along with the 35 companies in the Cocoa & Forests Initiative (CFI), have reported progress made towards ending deforestation in the two cocoa-growing countries.
Swiss-Ghanaian start-up Koa has secured two major investments to scale up its impact in the cocoa sector by successfully completing its Series A round raising a total of $4.7 million in equity – and a $3.5 million investment from climate adaptation and...
MIA, short for Made in Africa, is branching out from its base in Madagascar to work with cocoa farmers in West Africa. Co-founder Brett Beach tells ConfectioneryNews the reasons behind the move – and also provides an update on the situation on the island...
In a row over the impending European Commission’s deforestation law, African smallholder cocoa farmers say European organisations do not speak on their behalf and claim their proposal risks damaging their livelihoods.
The European Union has held its second Cocoa Roundtable Dialogue with Ghanaian stakeholders to discuss the environmental sustainability of cocoa production, while Cote d’Ivoire says quick compliance with broad legislation may pose challenges.
The Accessible Soils And Sustainable Environments (ASASE) will be working towards tackling deforestation and working to rehabilitate ageing cocoa farms and restore the country’s natural forests.
I am a cocoa farmer: Daniel Aboagye, Western Region, Ghana
In the third of her occasional 'I am a cocoa farmer series', cocoa scholar Kristy Leissle talks to Daniel Aboagye, who is not only a farmer but a recorder, or purchasing clerk, for the Kuapa Kokoo licensed cocoa buying company (LBC), so he has...
The Ghana Cocoa Awards has announced a shortlist of 82 nominees for its ceremony, which will take place on Saturday 14 November at the Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City in Accra.
Neighbors set-up a new joint body to improve coordination in research, price setting and the fight against child labour in their respective cocoa industries, the Ivorian government has revealed.
Ghana is the world’s second-biggest cocoa producer, after its West African neighbour, Cote d’Ivoire. Its main growing season runs from October to September, and while output may increase - a glut in the global market has raised wider concerns about lower...
A coalition consisting of 350 environmental, human rights, and good governance NGOs has signed an historic letter outlining steps that the Ghanaian and Ivorian governments must take to encourage sustainable cocoa while supporting farmers and protecting...
Two new reports published by the WCF and the Better Than Cash Alliance highlight why now, more than ever, the country’s impoverished farmers should get all the help they need in going digital.
Lockdown restrictions at destination ports for cocoa exports caused by the coronavirus pandemic is having a financial impact on Ghana’s main commodity due to slowing exports and sales.
Mars Wrigley has announced a $10m investment to support women’s empowerment in cocoa-growing communities, working with CARE to build on the success and learnings of their Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) initiative.
In the third article in our series, we look at Barry Callebaut's work in Ghana, the second largest cocoa growing country in the world, as the group released results of its Forever Chocolate global sustainability progress report.
In the second of a series of articles on Barry Callebaut’s operations in Ghana we look at the company’s carbon reduction strategy in West Africa – as the group announced that it is contributing to the collective efforts of climate change to cap global...
Barry Callebaut’s presence in Ghana’s cocoa sector is all consuming, like its presence in the chocolate industry, and it knows that with size comes responsibility. Ahead of the official publication of its worldwide sustainability program’s Forever Chocolate...
Two countries say they ‘reaffirm commitment to eradicating child labor and deforestation in cocoa and will collaborate with all stakeholders to promote and sustain the cocoa industry,’ after meeting with execs at WCF Partnership Meeting in Berlin.
Funds from FMO Bank will support the addition of new lines for instant cocoa powder, ready-to-drink chocolate and chocolate-based spreads from the Ghanaian-owned chocolate producer.
The German grocer has augmented its existing sustainable chocolate policy for private-label products as part of its overarching ‘Way To Go’ program of responsible sourcing.
The new premium line features Ghanaian chocolate in semisweet and ‘extra dark’ morsels. Plus, Nestlé boards the unicorn train with pink and blue-swirled chips.
World for Brexit (W4B) specifically calls out cocoa tariffs on its homepage, but FullFact.org – and World Trade Organization data – refutes the alleged 30% duty.
The world’s second-largest cocoa producing nation became the third country to sign a deal that aims to address the effects of deforestation and forest degradation.
I Am A Cocoa Farmer: John Narh Adamnor, Eastern Region, Ghana
‘I am a cocoa farmer’ is the first in an occasional series by Dr Kristy Leissle, scholar of the cocoa and chocolate industries. In each article, Leissle profiles one individual who makes a living growing cocoa, exploring how she or he came to cocoa farming,...
Following an investigation published in The Washington Post in June, two Democratic lawmakers requested that existing laws prohibiting such imports be enforced.
ConfectioneryNews spoke with three facets of the industry – a leading certifier, a boutique producer, and a nonprofit – to understand the potential efficacy of higher prices paid to farmers.
London-based Divine Chocolate is leading the way in the field of ethical and sustainable chocolate as Ghanaian cocoa farmer cooperative plays a key part in UK’s international exporting success with the United States being its biggest market.
Researchers set out to determine how much, if at all, a price premium would affect the reality of child labor in cocoa production in Ghana. Through three scenarios, they settled on an 11% bump transferred directly from government to farmer.
Out of 50 applicants, the Rainforest Alliance selected a winner and runner-up for their remote-sensing data plans to help digitize cocoa farming in Ghana.
The World Cocoa Farmers Organization (WCFO) is asking Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire to reconsider setting a minimum cocoa price, while the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) is suprised the price was not higher.
The Standard Bank Group, Africa’s biggest lender by assets, sent 17 members as part of an immersion program to discuss opportunities for growth in the Ghanian cocoa sector.
The Ghana Cocoa Board (Cocobod) has increased its initial treatment grant, which is part of the compensation package for landowners and cocoa farmers who agree to cut and replant infected trees under the National Cocoa Rehabilitation Program.
Farmer organizations will be guaranteed a higher price for cocoa sales on Fairtrade terms, as part of foundation’s strategy towards enabling living incomes it said. Changes will come into effect October 2019.
World’s biggest cocoa producer announces price increase for this season’s main cocoa crop, but Ghana announces no change to price, angering its farmers.
Zoë Genova, membership & outreach associate for the World Cocoa Foundation, samples the sights, sounds and tastes of her first field trip to Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana’s cocoa growing communities.