Barry Callebaut launches a sustainability strategy called Forever Chocolate that addresses challenges in the chocolate supply chain.
It introduces four 2025 sustainability targets to guide its move from sustainable cocoa to sustainable chocolate.
They are namely:
– Eradicating child labor from its supply chain,
– Lifting more than 500,000 cocoa farmers out of poverty,
– Becoming carbon and forest positive and
– Having 100% sustainable ingredients in all of its products.
“We have been pioneering sustainability in cocoa and chocolate for many years, and we have made great progress,” says CEO Antoine de Saint-Affrique.
“But despite all our efforts, only 23% of the cocoa beans we source are from sustainability programs.”
“We are determined to step change this and have 100% of our chocolate and its ingredient sustainably sourced by 2025.”
“The targets we have set ourselves after a thorough materiality analysis are bold, and we recognize that we do not have all the answers,” he says.
“What we know for sure is that we cannot reach these targets by ourselves.”
“That is why we intend to start a movement that also includes governments, NGOs, consumers and our customers.”
Through its sustainability programs with farmer cooperatives in origin countries, as well as through its direct sourcing and farm services organization, Biolands, the company has invested in productivity and community development for the past decade.
In addition, Barry Callebaut was a founding member of the World Cocoa Foundation as well as the International Cocoa Initiative and one of the driving forces behind CocoaAction, the World Cocoa Foundation’s voluntary strategy to align the initiatives of global cocoa and chocolate producers to improve the livelihood of cocoa farmers.
Despite industry’s efforts, there are a number of structural issues in the chocolate supply chain.
Low productivity on cocoa farms as a result of poor agricultural practices, nutrient depleted soil, and aging cocoa trees are keeping many farmers in a state of poverty.
Poverty prevents cocoa farmers from investing in their farms and new practices to increase productivity that would boost their incomes.
In addition, poverty keeps farmers from hiring professional workers, forcing them to rely on their family members, including their children, to work the fields.
Sustainable chocolate also requires achieving zero net deforestation and curbing carbon emissions for the production of any chocolate ingredient or chocolate product.
Barry Callebaut will publish each year a report on the progress it is making towards the four targets it has defined.
