As many know, the cocoa industry is sometimes opaque and complex. Still, confessed chocolate-lover Jon Trask, who is also CEO of Dimitra, says his company's recently developed Blockchain Deforestation Platform could provide a solution to help farmers...
The World Cocoa Foundation (WCF), in collaboration with IDH and key government officials, highlighted significant strides in sustainable forest conservation efforts from the chocolate industry and the success of the Cocoa & Forests Initiative (CFI),...
As part of Mars Inc.’s strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the confectionery major is optimising product recipes to include more environmentally friendly ingredients.
The cocoa and chocolate making industry has been warned that cocoa stocks languishing in EU warehouses during the 18-month transition period leading up to the European Union’s Deforestation law that kicks in at the end of December 2024 may have to be...
Global organisation Fairtrade is working to ensure farmers receive just and equitable working conditions. A new campaign, led by two jurisdictions, is reasserting these efforts.
Fairtrade International has announced a new partnership with Satelligence to scale up satellite monitoring of forested areas and farms to its globally certified cocoa and coffee producer organisations to meet new EU regulations.
The African Platform for Sustainable Cocoa, which brings together civil society cocoa platforms from Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana, has issued a statement alleging the cocoa industry is refusing to pay at the current market price plus the Living Income...
Consumer Reports (CR), a US independent, non-profit member organisation, has doubled down on its campaign against lead and cadmium in chocolate and urges changes after a new survey finds a third of products contain ‘concerning’ levels of heavy metals.
One of the major challenges facing the premium chocolate industry is the practice of ‘greenwashing’ where consumers are deceived by meaningless icons and false claims on labels purporting that the brand is committed to a responsible and transparent supply...
IFIS Sustainability a cutting-edge, free Abstracting and Indexing (A&I) database that curates the latest scientific research at the intersection of food and sustainability, has launched a new digital tool providing food innovators access to the latest...
olam food ingredients’ (ofi’s) flavour experts share their predictions on how families will tap into this season’s flavour trends to create a ‘Spooktacular’ 31 October.
Off the back of Tony's Chocolonely’s warning that the new cocoa farmgate price is still too low, other chocolate brands and global organisations call for an end to corporate greed and push for equity.
Amid rising farmgate prices yet insufficient Living Income Reference Prices (LIRP), cocoa companies turn to communication, connection and collaboration throughout the sector to advocate better wages for farmers.
Law provides a framework to investigate the use of forced labour in companies’ supply chains. All goods made using forced labour to be halted at EU borders and withdrawn from the market.
Five million, mainly small-scale farmers produce 75% of the world’s cocoa, and earning a living income has become the key objective for the cocoa sector. Still, despite various initiatives, it hasn’t changed core business practices so far. According to...
French cocoa supplier the Touton Group said it is adjusting its business strategy to meet upcoming sustainability and compliance requirements with a fresh investment in climate-friendly solutions and a commitment to strengthen its collaboration with partner...
The country’s cocoa production sector is under serious threat with climate change, disease, moribund farms, overaged tree stock, an aging farmer population, and an acute labour shortage, just some of the issues affecting productivity … that is why we...
The family-owned company has been processing cocoa beans into cocoa mass, butter, and powder at its own exclusively organic plant in Winterthur, Switzerland, since June 2022 and says an assessment carried out this month shows there have been no pesticide...
Cargill, one of the world’s largest cocoa suppliers, has been ordered by a Brazilian court to pay 600,000 reais ($120,185) as indemnity for allegedly buying cocoa from farms where child labour or forced work has been identified.
Platform for Sustainable Cocoa in Cote d'Ivoire (PICD) and the Ghana Civil-society Cocoa Platform (GCCP) are calling on their respective governments to raise the price of beans for the important 2023-24 season to make sure farmers can receive a living...
The cocoa and chocolates industry in Asia Pacific is concerned that the EU Deforestation Regulation could lead a two-tier market for cocoa beans, which could have far-ranging cost and pricing implications.
Cocoa grindings in Europe, North America and Asia fell for the second quarter of 2023, according to latest figures released by the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO), sending cocoa prices soaring on the markets as consumers look for cheaper chocolate.
A coalition of campaigners fighting to end environmental and human rights abuses in the cocoa sector has targeted coffee chain Starbucks to come clean on where it sources the ingredients for its chocolate products.
Nestlé has published a progress report on its Income Accelerator Program, which aims to support cocoa farmers in Côte d'Ivoire and incentivise them into greater productivity.
Cabosse Naturals, established by Barry Callebaut to unlock the potential of the entire cacaofruit, has launched a ‘free-flowing, 100% pure cacaofruit powder’, a new ingredient that can replace refined sugar in food manufacture, which also caters to growing...
In a period remembered for its supply chain challenges, energy cost surges, and raw material price hikes, Ferrero says it made ‘strong’ sustainability progress during the 2021/2022 financial year and is ‘on track’ to meet key targets.
WNWN Food Labs is rethinking chocolate, without cocoa. FoodNavigator visits the start-up’s R&D lab to see how its dark and ‘milk’ chocolate alternatives are made.
A new large-scale RCT finds that cocoa flavanols restored hippocampal-dependent memory in older adults with sub-optimal diets; an effect sustained over the three years of follow-up.
Tony’s Chocolonely has announced it has implemented a new legal ‘golden share’ mechanism to indefinitely protect its mission of producing ‘slave free chocolate’ – regardless of shareholder structure.
Charity calls for ‘Big Chocolate’ to pay more to Ghana’s cocoa farmers after it revealed that their net incomes have fallen on average by 16% since 2020, with women’s incomes falling by nearly 22%.
The long-term agreement with Nestlé will include payments for ecosystem services (PES) to more than 6,000 farmers covering 11,500 hectares of agroforestry in Côte d’Ivoire. The implementation of the project is already underway, with three cooperatives...
Alongside its 2022 Annual Report, Nestlé has published its Creating Shared Value and Sustainability (CSV) Report, with details on its supply chain transparency commitments and progress on its ‘Good for the Planet' initiative as well as the company’s...
Singapore chocolate firm Tatgu used the pandemic to press ahead with innovation across its low-sugar and -GI, and high-calcium product ranges, as it seeks to meet soaring demand for better-for-you treats.
The chocolate major is ‘redesigning’ how it farms, ferments, and roasts cocoa beans to develop a range of chocolate. We ask Bas Smit, Vice-President, Global Marketing and R&D, how the company is putting ‘cocoa first, sugar last’.
EU-proposed due-diligence legislation has been criticised for triggering unintended consequences across the supply chain, which begs the question: will such a law actually promote climate smart food?
Mars Wrigley has declared that from 2023, 100% of the cocoa purchased for its direct factory operations in Europe will be verified as ‘responsibly sourced cocoa’.
ofi (olam food ingredients), a global leader in naturally good food and beverage ingredients, says it has substantially advanced towards the climate goals stated in its Cocoa Compass sustainability report – but issued a call for the EU to work with other...
Switzerland is known for its chocolate. And now the first 100% organic cocoa processing plant in the country has completed its test phase and is gearing up production. FoodNavigator learns more about how this investment will meet growing demand for organic...
Fazer Confectionery is researching the potential of growing cocoa by adopting cellular agriculture to maintain its core commitment to sourcing raw materials sustainably.
Brother-sister duo Dr Maximilian and Dr Sara Marquart are working to ease the pressure on cocoa supply chains with an alternative developed via traditional and precision fermentation techniques. FoodNavigator catches up with one half of the ‘chocolate...
Finnish confectioner Fazer is working to secure a sustainable future cocoa supply. The company believes cellular agriculture could be part of that vision.
Cocoa flavanols appear to decrease blood pressure only when elevated say researchers, easing previous concerns that the nutrient can decrease blood pressure in healthy adults.
Mars Inc hopes to make a positive contribution to the livelihoods of smallholder cocoa farmers. The chocolate giant is trialling two new programmes that aim to address some of the structural issues that stand in the way of living incomes in cocoa. FoodNavigator...
UK start-up WNWN Food Labs is launching what it claims to be the ‘world’s first’ cacao-free chocolate. Made from two ‘hero ingredients’ – barley and carob – we ask co-founders Arhum Pak and Dr Johnny Drain what makes their product better than the real...
Food giant Mars Inc. has teamed with an artificial intelligence firm PIPA to speed the discovery of new plant-based ingredients for the human and animal food and dietary supplement markets.
Colour is one of the most important sensory cues when it comes to choosing what to eat – influencing what consumers see, what they taste and what they feel while doing it. How can bakery brands capitalise on this?
