Mars and Cadbury Move Closer to Sustainable Chocolate Goals

Mars commits to purchase 100,000 tonnes of UTZ CERTIFIED cocoa annually by 2020. Meanwhile Cadbury Dairy Milk has launched its new Fairtrade-certified chocolate bars, becoming the first mass market chocolate to gain certification from the Fairtrade Foundation.

22 Jul 2009 Mars, Incorporated announces another major milestone in its goal to use sustainably grown cocoa. Mars commits to purchase 100,000 tonnes of UTZ CERTIFIED cocoa annually by 2020. This week Mars contracted its first UTZ cocoa beans. With this small but significant step towards sourcing sustainable cocoa that will be harvested later this year, Mars is making a clear statement to cocoa farmers that there is a market for UTZ CERTIFIED cocoa beans now and well into the future.

This commitment comes on the heels of an earlier announcement in April, in which Mars stated its intention to use sustainably grown cocoa in all of its chocolate by the year 2020, an aggressive goal. Mars believes that certification can make a difference because farmers receive the training and support they need to improve their productivity and run more profitable cocoa farms. While Mars has supported farmers and the sustainable development of the cocoa crop for many years, it is focusing even more attention on putting farmers first – meaning that investments and resources will be put into working with certifying partners, cocoa farming communities, cocoa sector governments and national institutes to effect real change in the sustainable farming practices and certified cocoa.

Grant Reid, president, Mars Global Chocolate says: “We are proud to be leading the way with our commitment to certification by putting farmers first. Our vision is a sustainable cocoa industry where farmers, their families and communities benefit and nature is conserved. We invite the entire cocoa industry to work towards the broad adoption of sustainable cocoa farming practices, which will interest farmers in voluntarily certifying their sustainably grown cocoa.”

Juliette Caulkins, interim executive director, UTZ CERTIFIED says: “UTZ CERTIFIED stands for improvement; achieving long term economic viability for both producers and markets through professional and cost effective production and care for people and the environment. This commitment by one of the cocoa program founding members, Mars, is just the type of signal we want to send farmers, showing that businesses will invest in and purchase sustainable cocoa.” The UTZ cocoa program consists of members from the cocoa industry and NGOs such as Solidaridad, Oxfam Novib and WWF International.

Mars has been a global leader in cocoa sustainability for over 30 years and invests many millions of dollars each year in initiatives addressing the environmental, economic and social aspects of the cocoa supply chain. The principles by which Mars has always operated inspire the company to seek the most responsible methods of cocoa production, whereby the entire supply chain shares mutual benefit from the growth and processing of this unique and fragile crop. In certification, Mars collaborates with a number of partners and seeks to work with the governments of the countries where cocoa is grown to be sure that all farmers in the country benefit.

In April, Mars also committed to purchase 100,000 tonnes of cocoa from Rainforest Alliance certified cocoa farms. To meet its total cocoa needs, Mars will continue to work with certifying organizations like UTZ CERTIFIED and the Rainforest Alliance to achieve the 2020 goal of using certified, sustainably grown cocoa.

Meanwhile Cadbury Dairy Milk has launched its new Fairtrade-certified chocolate bars today, becoming the first mass market chocolate to gain certification from the Fairtrade Foundation. The independent FAIRTRADE Mark appears prominently on the new packaging, and will bring the logo into millions more homes in the UK for the first time.

The Fairtrade Cadbury Dairy Milk bars coming off the line today demonstrates the ongoing commitment by both Cadbury and the Fairtrade Foundation to secure the economic, social and environmental sustainability of cocoa farming communities in Ghana. It builds upon the work of the groundbreaking Cadbury Cocoa Partnership (CCP), which was launched in 2008.

In a matter of months, Cadbury has moved from announcing its plans for Fairtrade certification, to manufacturing Fairtrade chocolate. Realising this commitment will accelerate Fairtrade into the mainstream, whilst tripling the amount of cocoa sold under Fairtrade terms in Ghana from approximately 5,000 to 15,000 tonnes.

Cadbury has committed to offering the new Fairtrade bar at no extra cost, and with no change to the taste. Research carried out by the Fairtrade Foundation revealed that the two biggest barriers to increased purchase of Fairtrade products in the UK are lack of availability or visibility in-store and perceptions of price.

Trevor Bond, MD of Cadbury Britain and Ireland, says, “Having announced our intention to achieve Fairtrade certification for our flagship brand, Cadbury Dairy Milk, only a few months ago, it is exciting that these bars are now rolling off the production lines in Bournville. This creates a tipping point for Fairtrade with Fairtrade Cadbury Dairy Milk bars available to all, with the same great taste and at no extra cost. I’ve seen the new bars and I feel enormous pride that we are the first mainstream confectionery product in the UK to display the FAIRTRADE Mark. Fairtrade Cadbury Dairy Milk is the start of a new dawn for Fairtrade and for Cadbury. We will continue to work together to explore what else is possible with other brands and in other markets.”

Harriet Lamb, Executive Director of the Fairtrade Foundation, says, “This is a real milestone for Fairtrade and for cocoa growers in Ghana. Cadbury Dairy Milk will create a step change in awareness of Fairtrade here in the UK, whilst in Ghana, it could potentially transform the lives and opportunities for thousands of people in cocoa growing communities. From today, lovers of Cadbury Dairy Milk will be able to make their purchase in the knowledge that they are supporting a brighter future for very small scale cocoa farmers, their families and their villages.”

Cadbury Dairy Milk Fairtrade is part of Cadbury’s broader commitment to develop a sustainable business strategy to empower farmers to invest in their land and their communities. Through the Cadbury Cocoa Partnership (CCP), Cadbury is investing £45 million over the next ten years to secure sustainable cocoa farming in Ghana, India, Indonesia and the Caribbean where the cocoa farming industry is facing increasing challenges.