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.
Australia’s leading chocolate companies such as Mondelēz, Nestlé, Mars and Lindt have all pledged to source only “sustainable” cocoa for domestically manufactured goods, says the Australian Industry Group.
Buying certified cocoa only from third party organizations such as UTZ Certified is now an essential part of doing business for all chocolate companies, not just the big ones, says Scandinavian confectioner Cloetta.
Certification is one of the most potent tools for chocolate makers to avoid serious cocoa shortages and to improve the lives of farmers, according to the burgeoning certified cocoa organization, UTZ Certified.
Cargill has become the first to supply UTZ Certfied Cocoa from Brazil to help manufacturers realize sustainability commitments in the South American market.
Cargill has received the first ever shipment of UTZ cocoa in North America, a move which will be followed by other sustainable cocoa developments in the region, said the certifying body, as momentum gathers in the US market.
Another milestone has been achieved in the UTZ certified sustainable cocoa programme, with the first-ever shipment of cocoa beans from Ghana that meets that standard’s economic, environmental and social criteria.
Cocoa bean crop quality and yield is benefiting from a farmer training programme in the Ivory Coast, which is set to be extended to a wider number of farmer cooperatives this month, said Cargill.
A Cargill cocoa butter and powder plant in Ghana has obtained recognition by an international food audit group AIB International, which the ingredients giant claims is a validation that the facility is operating to the highest standards.
