Hershey will combine its responsible sourcing practices to expand the supply of sustainable cocoa while investing in community programs that improve education and the livelihoods of cocoa-growing families around the world.
100% Certified sustainable cocoa
A cornerstone of Hershey’s 21St Century Cocoa Plan is its commitment to source 100% third-party certified cocoa for all of its chocolate products worldwide by 2020.
Certified cocoa is verified by independent auditors who assess against established standards for labor, environmental and sustainable farming practices.
With about 5% of the world’s cocoa supply certified at the end of 2012 and the need for certified cocoa growing, Hershey believes its 2020 commitment – announced last October – is already helping expand the global supply of certified cocoa.
2020 certified cocoa milestones
The company is on track to source at least 10% of its total global cocoa purchases from certified sources in 2013, the first year of its 2020 commitment. Hershey also announced benchmarks for reaching 100% by 2020.
Accelerating CocoaLink
The Hershey 21St Century Cocoa Plan also includes accelerating and expanding its innovative and successful CocoaLink mobile phone program, which the company launched in 2011 in Ghana with the Ghana Cocoa Board and the World Cocoa Foundation. In 2013, the programme will expand into Cote d’Ivoire, a major cocoa-producing country.
Accelerating change to improve lives
Hershey’s 21St Century Cocoa Plan represents a range of on-the-ground programmes and initiatives that work together to accelerate positive change in the cocoa growing regions over the next seven years.
Through its own and partner programmes, Hershey estimates the total portfolio of programs encompassed by its 21St Century Cocoa Plan will directly impact 750,000 cocoa farmers and indirectly benefit more than two million West Africans through utilisation of technology, farmer training on good agricultural practice, cocoa seed nurseries and planting material, farm inputs on credit, village resource centres, malaria prevention, community infrastructure, village school construction, and literacy and health programmes.
Source: Hershey
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