Barry Callebaut enters alt-cocoa partnership amid conflicting full-year earnings report

Barry Callebaut is entering a long-term commercial partnership with German fermentation specialist Planet A Foods to scale ChoViva, a cocoa-free, sunflower-based chocolate alternative. The group is aiming to broaden its range of cocoa-free chocolate solutions amid volatility in the cocoa market, which has impacted its recently released annual earnings report. 

While Barry Callebaut reiterates that traditional cocoa remains central to its portfolio, the collaboration will help boost its mixed fiscal results, which highlight a complex picture of higher revenue but falling volumes. 

Group revenue jumped 49% in local currencies to CHF 14.8 billion (US$18.2 billion), but sales volumes fell 6.8%, with declines of 5.3% in Global Chocolate and 12.8% in Global Cocoa. Operating profit rose by 6.4% in local currencies, but net profit dropped by 35.9% as weaker sales volumes and higher financing costs weighed on performance.

Barry Callebaut CEO Peter Feld describes the fiscal year as one marked by “exceptional and unprecedented volatility in the cocoa and chocolate markets,” but stresses that strategic actions in the second half have strengthened resilience. 

The company expects sales volumes to fall again by a mid-single-digit rate in 2026 but anticipates modest profit growth as it focuses on higher-return cocoa operations and develops new non-cocoa chocolate products.

ChoViva: Chocolate-like taste and texture

ChoViva is made from locally available crops, such as sunflower seeds, which Plant A Foods processes through a “fermentation-like process based on ancient beer brewing technology” before being roasted. The method creates a chocolate-like taste and texture, which it claims is similar to traditional cocoa-based products. 

By using sustainable, locally sourced non-cocoa ingredients, the alternative also complements Barry Callebaut’s broader sustainability ambitions by shortening supply chains and contributing to a lower environmental footprint across the value chain.

Christian Hansen, Barry Callebaut’s head of global strategy, says the collaboration reflects the company’s push to strengthen resilience amid cocoa-market volatility. “Through this partnership with Planet A Foods, Barry Callebaut is embracing technology to open further avenues for growth while enhancing our resiliency to today’s cocoa-market volatility,” he notes. 

Dries Roekaerts, president of customer experience, adds that the partnership “marks a key milestone in diversifying our portfolio and capturing the exciting opportunities in chocolate alternatives without cocoa.”

For Planet A Foods, the partnership represents a global scaling opportunity. “Our goal has always been to scale ChoViva into a global ingredient platform — and this equal partnership helps us do just that,” says co-founder and CEO Dr. Maximilian Marquart. 

The company’s CTO, Dr. Sara Marquart, emphasizes that ChoViva “delivers a genuine chocolate-like experience, crafted from 100% natural ingredients and entirely without cocoa,” offering a more mindful choice for consumers.