Introduction to the film Nothing like Chocolate www.chocoladeboot.nl, discussing the environmental, social and economic issues at stake in making the chain of making the '"food of the gods".

1. Introduction: Nothing like chocolate!
Pre-film introduction and discussion, Heerenstraattheater, Wageningen, The
Netherlands www.chocoladeboot.nl
13 May 2014
Dr. Verina Ingram
LEI, Wageningen UR

2. Cocoa theobroma
 Greek “food of the gods”
 Mexican Aztec xocolātl
 “bitter water“
 Cultivars
 Criollo
 Forastero
 Trinitario
 Tree bears fruit at 4-5 years
old, average age 40 years, up
to 100
 Tropical needs shade, warm
climate abundant rainfall,
nutrient rich soil
30 pods
40 beans each
1 pod
500 beans
1 tree
600
flowers
1 kg
chocolate

3. A tropical cash crop with colonial roots
Cacao cultivation spread across the hot, humid tropical belt reversing the slave triangle

4. What's in a bean?
Sources: Buitrago-Lopez et al 2011, Mursu et al. 2004, Steinberg et al. 2003, Wollgast & Anklam 2000, Crozier et al. 2011
Theobromine, caffeine
< 1 % Vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, C, E , pantothenic acid
< 1-4 % Alkaloids Mild stimulant, arousal
Craving
Impacts cholesterol,
improve cardiovascular health,
inflammation reduction,
neuropsychological & cognitive functioning
cerebral blood flow
Pleasure, craving
Suggested health impacts

5. From bean to bar...

6. Where is cocoa produced?
Exporters (Top 10) Importers (Top 10)
Cote d’Ivoire United States
Ghana Netherlands
Indonesia Germany
Nigeria France
Cameroon Malaysia
Ecuador United Kingdom
Togo Belgium/Luxembourg
Papua New Guinea Russian Federation
Dominican Republic Spain
Guinea Canada
Sources: UCTAD & ICCO, World Cocoa Foundation

7. Where is cocoa traded? Source: ICCO, The Guardian

8. Who eats the most chocolate?
 Source ICCO 2012
2282
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
gpercapitadomesticconsumptionchocolate2010/2011
18th

9. Supply chain

10. Social challenges
90% produced by 3 million small holder farmers
Approx. 14 million employed
Farmers high poverty levels
Fair prices & incomes
Position of women and workers
Ensuring basic rights re child and forced labour
Worker health and safety on farm
Human toxicity of crop protection products
Risk management and diversification
Source: TSC 2013, Cocoa Barometer 2012

11. Environmental challenges
Sourcing from ecologically sensitive regions
On-farm use of chemicals for crop protection
(pesticides) and inorganic fertilizer use
Depletion soil fertility and quality on farm
Biodiversity loss (full sun farms & deforestation)
Maintaining genetic diversity and resilience
farming systems and ecosystems
Pollution water sources
Packaging waste
Energy use and emissions during transport and
grinding, roasting and processing

12. Economic challenges
Insufficient supply to meet growing global
demand + declining yields
Control of and losses to pests & diseases
Volatile prices
Efficient models to delivering services and
products to farmers
Impact climate change
Farmer access to markets and adding
value
Governance and traceability in the chain
Cocoa prices
“Cocoa prices are too
low bearing in mind
how much demand
there is for it”
Edward George, Ecobank
Commodities, January 28 2014

13. Solutions.....

14. Abidjan Declaration
November 2012, World Cocoa Conference Cote d’Ivoire
Goal : move the entire sector to a path of sustainable development that will
benefit all stakeholders along the cocoa value chain
1) Strategic management
• Coordinate initiatives and participate in voluntary consensual processes
• National Cocoa Development Plans based on Public-Private-Partnership Models (PPP)
• Improve living standards and working conditions - especially women and children and ILO standards
2) Sustainable production
• Attract younger generations
• Better planting material and inputs, innovative technology, integrated pest management
• Aid farmer’s groups to offer training in “Good Agricultural Practices”
• Support Affordable and accessible credit services
• Manage soil fertility, preserve biodiversity and existing ecosystems
3) Chain sustainability
• Enhance traceability
• Reduce harmful impacts on the environment
• Training and access to market and consumer safety information
• Increase income by value-addition at origin
4) Sustainable consumption
• Respond to expectations and concerns of consumers
• Promote consumption in traditional/mature markets and origin/producer countries

15. Harkin-Engel Protocol (Labor agreement)
September 19, 2001
• Framework for growing and processing of cocoa beans and their
derivative products to comply with the International Labour
Organization Convention 182 on the elimination of the worst
forms of child labour.
• Signed by industry groups: the World Cocoa Foundation and the
Chocolate Manufacturers Association (now the Chocolate
Council of the National Confectioners Association), Guittard,
Mars, World’s Finest Chocolate, Archer Daniels Midland
Company, Nestlé US, Blommer Chocolate, Hershey Food
Corporation and Barry Callebaut, governments in West Africa,
NGOs, farmers groups and experts
 Progress? Dark side of Chocolate film, Bitter Harvest report,
Payson Centre Tulane University, Fair Labour Association

16. The Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality signed a letter of
intent with 30 supermarkets, industry associations, companies,
government agencies, NGO’s and certification agencies in the cocoa
sector.
They committed to;
Produce 100% of ‘Chocolade letters’ in the Dutch market from
100% guaranteed sustainable cocoa by 2012
50% of all cocoa beans used in cocoa products in the Dutch market
sourced from guaranteed sustainable cocoa by 2015
80% of all cocoa beans used in cocoa products in the Dutch market
sourced from guaranteed sustainable cocoa by 2020
100% consumption in the Netherlands sourced from guaranteed
sustainable cocoa by 2025
Results out June 2014!!
March 2010 Letter of Intent:
Sustainable cocoa consumed in the Netherlands

17. Guaranteed certified cocoa:
What does it mean ?
In 2012 approx. 1143 k
tons cocoa = 7%
certified globally
- up from 2% in 2009 –
however a supply deficit
with synergies to
upscale and to increase
efficiencies in demand
*no other such systems were found or used to provide data yet
Sources: Cocoa Barometer 2011, 2012, IFC
Visible, measurable, third party schemes,
independent auditing and monitoring of
cocoa in the chain from producer to
retailer with a traceable system.
2012
405 Kt
534 Kt
165 Kt
? Kt 37 Kt ? Kt
1,143 Kt
and other comparable systems*

18. • From 2008 to 2015 Sustainable Trade Action Plan
partners investing 40 million € (cocoa) on
enhancing sustainability of commodity chains:
certification main tool
• Dutch government & partners investing 40 million €
(cocoa) from 2008 to 2015 on enhancing
sustainability of commodity chains: certification
major vehicle to achieve this.
• Recent studies highlight need for evidence on
impact of sustainability initiatives – especially PPP
and certification.
• Multi-stakeholder international public + private +
research + CSO partnerships emerging

19. What's needed?
oUp-scaling positive initiatives
oMaintaining the sustainability /certification buzz
oDemonstrating to consumers initiatives having effect
oContinued education and training farmers & workers e.g. GAP
oImproved and accessible cultivars
oIncrease productivity
oAccess to inputs and credit
oAlternative energy sources
oContinued promotion of biodiversity (cultivar, farm and landscape
level)
oMore efficient use current land & avoid abandonment of farms
oPartnerships
oAlternatives and innovators high value and niche markets

20. Challenges
 Demonstrating progress to environmental
and social goals
 Who pays?
 Going beyond certification
 Speed of progress....
 Sharing pre-competitive information,
complementarity – not duplication
 Efficient use public funding
 Convincing private sector about efficiency
of data sharing to improve monitoring,
evaluation and trade data