Sustainability is now a constant buzzword in our ears, with every chocolate company worth its CSR salt pronouncing that it’s doing its upmost to implement high-profile programmes that not only meet their CSR vision, but also meet with the CSR criteria of the world’s investment community.
The question is, does the consumer understand what they’re being offered, and secondly, do they really care, so long as they don’t have to pay extra for it.
However, with an ever-growing multitude of certification bodies, it’s difficult to see the cocoa trees from the wood! The reality is that there’s a significant gap between the availability of sustainable cocoa and the requirements to fulfil the commitments made by the market. So now sustainable cocoa is becoming a valuable commodity, with supplying cooperatives now being offered incentives to move their alliance from one buyer to another.
Is this a sustainable situation? Have we not been here before? Do we not already know the result?
Marc Donaldson is a partner at On The Ball Consulting. He’s the former president of Delfi Cocoa and the former CEO of Heritage Fine Chocolates. He was also managing director Asia Pacific for Barry Callebaut.
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