Mondelez Scales Up Sustainable Cocoa Partnership With Barry Callebaut and Solidaridad

16 Oct 2015 --- Mondelez International, the world's largest chocolate company, has announced the expansion of its Cocoa Life program in Côte d’Ivoire. In line with its commitment to empower 200,000 farmers and invest $400 million in Côte d’Ivoire and five other cocoa origins by 2022, Mondelez International will partner with Barry Callebaut, the world’s leading manufacturer of chocolate and cocoa products, and Solidaridad, international development NGO, to scale up the implementing capacity of its holistic Cocoa Life program.

“This new partnership will allow us to quickly double the number of farmers we reach in Côte d’Ivoire in just two years from 2014,” said Cathy Pieters, Director of Cocoa Life at Mondelez International. “Their complementary expertise will support our objectives of creating thriving cocoa communities while ensuring sustainable cocoa production.”

Barry Callebaut and Solidaridad will work hand in hand on the ground. Barry Callebaut will provide farmers with agricultural training and access to inputs to improve cocoa productivity and incomes, while Solidaridad will work together with the cocoa communities to design tailored community action plans and implement actions to strengthen livelihoods, empower women and promote children’s rights.

“We have had a long-time commitment to sustainability, and as a long-term partner of Mondelez International, we are extremely pleased to have been selected to support the implementation of their cocoa sustainability programs,” said Antoine de Saint-Affrique, CEO of Barry Callebaut. “We will use our strong presence on the ground to help Mondelez International transform the lives and livelihoods of cocoa farmers and their communities.”

Cocoa Life’s holistic approach is already making progress in Côte d’Ivoire. Innovative actions like the setting up of Village and Loans Associations promote women’s practical financial literacy and access to lending, while farmer trainings support cocoa productivity and farmers’ incomes.

Barry Callebaut, a major cocoa supplier to Mondelez International, has developed and implemented sustainability programs with a focus on improving the livelihoods of cocoa farmers and their communities through the promotion of sustainable, entrepreneurial farming, improved productivity, and community development.

Solidaridad founded the Max Havelaar Foundation and launched the first Fair Trade label for sustainable coffee. The successful launch of Fair Trade coffee within the Netherlands helped spark the global Fair Trade movement.

Today Solidaridad is an international organization which focuses on improving the lives of producers and their communities in various supply chains, including cocoa, by providing innovative solutions to improve productivity in a sustainable and inclusive way.

Mbalo Ndiaye, Côte d’Ivoire lead for Mondelez International’s Cocoa Life Program explained: “Together Barry Callebaut and Solidaridad will work with Cocoa Life in all five focus areas of our program. Both organizations have submitted to us proposals that describe in full detail the activities they are engaging in and are committing to implement over three years. Barry Callebaut will be responsible for farming, which means they will implement the productivity package of services that we provide to farmers. This includes training, access to fertilizer, pest and disease management, and planting materials.”

“I am keen to extend to this partnership the success we’ve made in developing and extending to women access to financial resources through the Village Savings and Loan Associations. This initiative has not only helped develop practical financial literacy among women but also substantially increased the lending capacity of the women’s groups to their members. Over the past six months, I’ve had women in cocoa communities tell me how their overall household income (in addition to cocoa income) has increased; how they now have the money to invest in their children’s schooling; how they’ve been able to diversify their income sources through various economic activities.”

“Solidaridad’s mission is to bring together supply chain actors and engage with innovative solutions to improve production, ensuring the transition to a sustainable and inclusive economy that maximizes benefit for all," says Mr. Ahmadou Cisse, Solidaridad Country Representative, Côte d’Ivoire. “Mondelez International’s Cocoa Life program wants to do the same thing with cocoa farming communities, so this is a perfect fit.”

Anke Massart, General Manager of cocoa sustainability for Barry Callebaut, feels the same way: “Barry Callebaut has been committed to sustainable agriculture and farm productivity in West Africa for many years now, and this partnership with Cocoa Life is a huge opportunity for us to continue and expand on that work.”