Ghana

Established in 1994, today ofi in Ghana is one of the leading ingredients companies in the country.  We export cocoa and cashew, which is grown by more than 300,000 farmers. We thank our success to our dedicated team and the strong relationships with our farmers, distributors and partners we have built over the last more than 25 years.

Cashews

ofi’s Cashew business is one of the first businesses for Olam in Ghana and presently we are a leading exporter of raw cashew nuts from Ghana. We are happy that over the years we have been part of the success story of Ghana’s cashew industry growth and contributed to it responsibly as a market leader.

Over the years, we have invested in capacity building for Cashew farming communities to help them overcome challenges such as low yield, poor quality and access to market.  We offer year-round support to our farmers and have built strong relationships. We collect produce from farmers and aggregate inventory at ofi - warehouses, which also receive goods from our buying agents. Each location is equipped with drying and packing facilities allowing us to maintain the quality of the product and prepare it quickly for export to customers outside of Ghana.

Beyond the harvest season, we train farmers in Good Agricultural Practice to help them farm sustainably, increase their economic prosperity and create healthy ecosystems. We identify training needs at a community level and deliver tailored programmes.

It is refreshing to know that apart from supporting the growth of the Ghana cashew crop through the annual distribution of free cashew grafts to the farmers with whom we are directly connected to, we also promote alternative livelihood income support programs in cashew orchards. Our flagship program in bee keeping has seen over 400 women trained so far and set up in honey production: an additional household income from cashew orchards tailored towards women.

We also provide knowledge support and related training programs to adhere to the stipulated framework for Organic Cashew.

Overall, Cashew team has believed in working with the farming community beyond the routine transactional relation and extend into activities which could lead to the welfare of the cashew farmers.

Cocoa

From sourcing cocoa beans at the farmgate and establishing a Licensed Buying Company in 1999, to working with farming communities across the country and operating a state-of-the-art factory, we provide Ghanaian cocoa products to customers worldwide. 

Traceability and sustainability are at the core of our operations. We source beans from smallholder farmers across Ghana and provide year-round support to help them achieve the best income for their crop. The cocoa business has maintained leadership position as the number I license Buying Company (LBC) in the country with presence across the entire cocoa landscape.

Our support ranges from micro financing, to training on Good Agricultural Practices and Climate-smart agriculture, to supplying hybrid cocoa and shade tree seedlings. 

Olam is a founding member of the Cocoa and Forests Initiative (CFI). We are currently working in several landscapes in Ghana partnering with Government, NGOs, and other state Institutions to develop cocoa landscapes by supporting farmers improve productivity and livelihoods using LMB approach.

A leader in cocoa ingredient processing 

Since we began our cocoa operations in Ghana, production has grown from approximately 450,000 metric tonnes a day, to around one million. Our portfolio accounts for 25% of all cocoa beans traded in Ghana. 

Established in 2009 and located in the Kaase Industrial Area, Kumasi, our state-of-the-art bean processing factory is accredited by the Ghana Food and Drugs Authority with one of the highest quality standards in the industry. We have 300 employees and create indirect employment for another 1,000 individuals in the wider community.

Through our Kumasi operations, we uphold a range of certifications to ensure we meet market demands and offer our customers choice and assurance. Our factory is SMETA certified for responsible social practices, FSSC 22000 certified for food safety, UTZ and Fairtrade certified for sustainable liquor production and we offer Halal and Kosher products. Under our Unicao brand, the factory produces a variety of liquors ranging from mild roast to full-bodied roasted nibs and enables us to offer cocoa products from single-source origin for multiple cocoa applications. It offers cocoa mass in 15 kg cartons, 25 kg cartons and 25kg ingots.

Unicao cocoa products are sourced from several origins. Read more about the history of this, and other cocoa brands in our cocoa portfolio.

Cashews

Cocoa

Read ofi news

Press Release May 13, 2025

ofi opens soluble coffee facility in Brazil, expanding its manufacturing capacity with focus on sustainable innovation

Landmark strategic investment in Linhares combines local economic development with ofi’s sustainability strategy
New facility complements ofi’s existing facilities in Vietnam and Spain, providing global customer base with high-quality freeze-dried and spray-dried instant coffee

ofi, a global leader in naturally good food and beverage ingredients, officially inaugurated its state-of-the-art soluble coffee facility in Linhares, Espírito Santo, Brazil on Friday, May 9^th. The strategic investment strengthens ofi's position as a top 3 independent producer in the growing global soluble coffee market, projected to reach $52.2 billion by 2031^[1], while creating significant economic impact in Brazil's premier coffee-growing region.

Located in the heart of Brazil's Conilon coffee region, the Linhares facility transforms coffee beans sourced from ofi’s coffee units across Brazil into premium soluble products. Serving a global network of customers, the Linhares site has two complete lines of freeze-dried and spray-dried instant coffee, thereby maximizing output and material efficiency.

"This inauguration represents a triple win – for local communities, for our customers, and for the environment," said Vivek Verma, ofi’s Managing Director & CEO, coffee. "By processing coffee at the source, we're strengthening our integrated supply chain and farmer partnerships to deliver traceable, sustainable soluble coffee products to our customers. A strengthened innovation infrastructure focusing on value-added coffee products will build growth opportunities in South and North America, while also serving consumption markets in Europe and Asia. I would like to thank the Espírito Santo state government for establishing an enabling business environment.”

Brazil is of strategic importance to ofi’s portfolio – with operations across coffee, cocoa and spices having been developed over the past 24 years. The Linhares site was selected due to the abundant Conilon coffee production in the Espírito Santo region which provides approximately 70% of Brazil's output^[2] - a potential growth driver for the global supply of robusta coffee beans. The site complements ofi’s existing soluble coffee processing facilities in Spain and Vietnam.

Sustainable by design, innovative by nature

Sustainability is built into every aspect of the Linhares operation, in line with ofi's "Choices for Change" strategy. It is powered by 100% renewable electricity and biomass boilers that convert coffee production waste into energy, helping to reduce the carbon footprint of ofi and its customers. The beans supplied to the facility are fully traceable and the soluble coffee produced from the facility is certified by the Rainforest Alliance.

The facility features cutting-edge technology for producing diverse soluble coffee products, with a state-of-the-art Freeze Dryer that uses energy-efficient methods. It also incorporates ofi's new soluble coffee innovation center, building on an integrated global network of 19 innovation centers – across ofi’s portfolio of cocoa, coffee, dairy, nuts and spices.

Press Release Apr 23, 2025

Nestlé and ofi launch global agroforestry partnership in largest collaboration yet

Approximately 25,000 farmers across Brazil, Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria will be trained and supported to convert their farms to agroforestry and implement crop residue management
The aim is to plant over 2.8 million trees and cultivate more than 72,000 hectares of agroforestry as part of a transition to regenerative agriculture.
It’s estimated to cut more than 1.5 million tons of CO₂ over the next 30 years from these activities

Nestlé, the world’s largest food and beverage company and ofi (olam food ingredients), a global leader in naturally good food and beverage ingredients and solutions, are launching their largest-ever joint cocoa agroforestry partnership to reduce carbon emissions and combat deforestation.

As the cocoa industry faces the dual challenges of rising demand and increased environmental pressures, Nestlé and ofi are stepping up their efforts to create a more sustainable future for cocoa production.

Spanning Nigeria, Côte d'Ivoire, and Brazil, approximately 25,000 farmers will be supported in transitioning to climate-smart farming, over a 5-year period in each country by implementing agroforestry and crop residue management^[1]. These activities will be monitored until 2055, with ofi’s carbon footprinting experts estimating they can cut carbon emissions by 1.5 million tons of CO₂ over the next 30 years.

The project aims to cultivate more than 72,000 hectares of agroforestry, as part of a transition to regenerative agriculture. This includes planting an estimated 2.8 million trees, which will be 3^rd party verified, from the nursery to the farm. The baselines for these activities have been established using ofi’s AI-powered Carbon Stock Monitoring tool and will be used continuously to track the geolocation of the trees and that they are growing to comply with the objectives set out by Nestlé and ofi.

The global partnership builds on 15 years of Nestlé and ofi collaborating on sustainable cocoa and is their largest joint agroforestry initiative to date. It is designed to support Nestlé’s Cocoa Plan and 2050 Net Zero targets while also contributing towards ofi’s Cocoa Compass sustainability ambition, which introduced new targets for regenerative agriculture. These feed into ofi’s overarching sustainability strategy, Choices for Change, with a vision of being the preferred partner for positive change.

Events Apr 11, 2025

Meet ofi at PLMA and discover our private label capabilities

We look forward to meeting you in person at PLMA. Come and visit us at stand 1.J15, hall 1, where our private label experts will be happy to help you discover our market ready solutions in soluble coffee, nuts and spices. Book your appointment now via your ofi contact or email.