Sustainability in cocoa

Cocoa Compass Stories

Keeping the 1.5 degrees ambition alive through collective action

Nov 15, 2022

Gerry Manley, CEO of ofi cocoa and Chief Sustainability Officer of ofi

At last year’s COP26 climate summit, promises were made by governments and companies to go further and faster to tackle climate change. Now, as we reach the midpoint of COP27, the focus is on how to turn commitment into action and keep the 1.5 degrees climate ambition alive.

International Day of the African Child 2022: Putting children first in cocoa

Jun 16, 2022

This week is International Day of the African Child, a day that raises awareness of the continuing need to improve education for children in Africa.

With our teams on the ground in many cocoa-growing communities across the continent, we see first-hand the issues that many African children face on a daily basis. Some have no school nearby or cannot provide the documents needed to enroll.

Collaborating with Save the Children to tackle Child Labor

May 24, 2022

Child labor in cocoa has no one cause. There are often complex and deep-rooted cultural, social, and economic challenges at play.

Farmers cannot always afford to pay for farm labor, so their children help on the farm at weekends or after school. Some parents have no school nearby to send their children to or they cannot provide the documents needed to enroll them, such as birth certificates. Sometimes labor laws are misunderstood or poorly enforced.

Taking action to protect and restore forests

Apr 29, 2022

Today, we’re publishing our 2021 Cocoa & Forests Initiative (CFI) Report to share our progress in the last year towards ending deforestation and restoring lost forests in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana. Andrew Brooks, ofi’s Head of Cocoa Sustainability, tells us more.

Candid image of a woman standing between green leafy plants

Achieving 100% traceability across our direct global cocoa supply chain

Sep 21, 2021

We set out challenging goals that address the issues facing the sector, from supporting farmers to earn a living income, to putting children first by eliminating child labour and increasing access to education, to protecting forests and mitigating our environmental impact.

Putting children first in cocoa

Jun 11, 2021

Most child labour in cocoa relates to children carrying out hazardous tasks on the family farm, distinct from the much rarer issue of forced labour, and has no one cause.

Action shot of smiling children running in the street

Our progress towards tackling deforestation in cocoa

May 4, 2021

Forests are vital to sustainable cocoa production. Not only do they help to improve biodiversity and mitigate against climate change, they also help to improve cocoa yields and raise farmer incomes.

Scenic photo of a forest and a waterfall

Create World’s Largest Sustainable Commercial Cocoa Farm

Apr 21, 2021

Mondelēz International, Inc. (Nasdaq: MDLZ), a global leader in snacking, and olam food ingredients (ofi), a leading supplier of cocoa beans and cocoa ingredients, have today announced a new collaboration in Indonesia to create the world’s single largest sustainable commercial cocoa farm.

Group of female farm workers sorting garlic cloves

Cocoa Compass targets for 100% child labour and deforestation monitoring

Apr 14, 2021

olam food ingredients (ofi), a leading supplier of cocoa beans and cocoa ingredients, today announces it has established child labour monitoring across its managed sustainability programmes.

Brazilian man wearing a red shirt posing with a plant with a forest in the background

Olam Cocoa hits 100% traceability target across its direct global supply chain

Sep 21, 2020

Olam Cocoa, a leading supplier of cocoa beans and ingredients, today announces it has achieved 100% traceability of directly sourced cocoa across its global supply chain, a commitment first stated five years ago.

Two men looking at something on a mobile device

Disclosure of cooperative suppliers in Côte d’Ivoire

Jul 16, 2020

In October 2019 we launched Cocoa Compass, our sustainability ambition for the future of cocoa. With milestones for action in 2020 and 2024, it sets concrete goals for 2030 across our global, direct cocoa supply chain. These goals will help us achieve our vision of an environmentally positive, professionalised and quality focused cocoa supply chain comprising farmers earning a living income and whose children have access to education.

Man from Côte d’Ivoire standing in a cocoa plantation posing for the camera

Educating children on COVID-19 prevention

Jul 2, 2020

Recently, children in the cocoa growing communities we work with in Côte d’Ivoire came together to celebrate the International Day of the African Child, which raises awareness of the challenges children face in Africa, with a focus on improving access to quality education.

Meet Augustin, he’s supporting cocoa farmers and their families

Jun 12, 2020

We’re committed to supporting not just the cocoa farmers we work with, but their families too. This World Day Against Child Labour, meet Augustin, our community development lead helping to roll out child labour monitoring and remediation across our cocoa supply chain, providing a vital step towards eliminating child labour and making sure all children in cocoa-growing communities have access to education.

Two men smiling holding and smiling for the camera

Helping cocoa farming communities across Africa fight COVID-19

May 18, 2020

Olam Cocoa has announced a package of support to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) and important medical supplies to cocoa farming communities tackling COVID-19 across Central and West Africa. Farming cooperatives, hospitals and health centres will receive much-needed equipment including face masks, surgical gloves, hand sanitiser, thermometers and hands-free washing stations.

Working together to put children first in Côte d’Ivoire

May 1, 2020

Despite significant progress, child labour still occurs in the cocoa supply chain, often as a result of social and economic challenges like migration, poverty or lack of infrastructure. If there is no school nearby or parents cannot afford school fees, children can be kept at home to work on family farms and support household incomes.

Teacher standing with a child in a classroom

One intervention is not enough in the fight against child labour

Apr 3, 2020

Child labour in cocoa producing countries often stems from some really complex societal and economic challenges, from migration and poverty, to proximity to schools and community infrastructure.

Taking the pain out of pruning

Mar 13, 2020

It’s not news that most cocoa farmers in West Africa struggle to make a living income. And we know that this has a knock-on impact on things like deforestation as farmers are forced to encroach on forest land in search of fertile soil.

Man harvesting something from a tree using a stick

Empowering women is essential for having a positive impact on the future

Mar 9, 2020

Empowering women is essential for having a positive impact on the future of sustainable cocoa. It’s not an easy task as they often face a lot of barriers to reap the fruits of their labour.

Smiling woman standing in front a a yellow wall

Olam Cocoa introduces the first professionalised child labour monitoring

Mar 6, 2020

Child labour monitoring and remediation is set to be rolled out across Cameroon in the first programme of its kind by a cocoa company.

Investing in Nature with the Cocoa Forest Project in Pará, Brazil

Feb 24, 2020

Deforestation has had a devastating impact on the Amazon and nowhere more so than in Pará, the state with the highest rate of deforestation in Brazil. Overall, 1.2 million hectares of forest have been lost there in last 5 years, mainly due to cattle ranching.

ofi introduces the first professionalised child labour monitoring and remediation to Cameroon

Feb 5, 2020

Child labour monitoring and remediation is set to be rolled out across Cameroon in the first programme of its kind by a cocoa company. The move forms part of olam food ingredients' (ofi's) global commitment to put children first by tackling child labour and helping more children attend school across its entire direct supply chain.

Olam Cocoa and Rainforest Alliance educate school children in Côte d'Ivoire

Jan 24, 2020

To mark the United Nations’ International Day of Education, Olam Cocoa has today announced plans to extend an innovative education programme that teaches school children from farming communities in Côte d'Ivoire about the devastating impact of climate change and deforestation.

Group of girl children wearing school uniform singing and clapping hands

How do we sustain a growing population without sacrificing our natural resources?

Jan 9, 2020

The world’s food needs are skyrocketing. By 2050, there will be another 2 billion mouths to feed, placing a huge strain on agribusiness globally.

Woman carrying a pot plant on her head inside a warehouse filled with plants

Finance for the future: how cocoa farmers are saving to send their kids

Jun 12, 2019

Parents in the cocoa farming communities of Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, where over 65% of the world’s cocoa comes from, have the same concerns as parents around the world. Their preference is to have their children in school.

Group of woman sitting on the ground working together and cracking open cocoa pods

Half a year on from Indonesia’s double disaster

Apr 2, 2019

Indonesia has become my second home since I moved to its capital, Palu, in 2007 to lead a team of more than thirty people who form the heart of Olam Cocoa’s two-decade long operation in the country.

Group photo of a group of adults and children smiling

How to keep more of the world's forests intact

Mar 21, 2019

Agriculture is one of the largest drivers of this deforestation and the role of cocoa farming in particular has become the focus of much public and private debate.

Cocoa pods laying scattered on the ground

Olam Cocoa strengthens its commitment to end deforestation in global cocoa supply chain

Mar 8, 2019

The company today announced further commitments to end deforestation and forest degradation in its entire cocoa supply chain worldwide.

Announcement banner from cocoa forests initiative to end deforestation

Home > Sustainability > Responsible & Sustainable Sourcing > Sustainability in cocoa

Sustainability in cocoa

Sustainable Cocoa Suppliers 2022

Cocoa Compass Stories

Keeping the 1.5 degrees ambition alive through collective action

Nov 15, 2022

International Day of the African Child 2022: Putting children first in cocoa

Jun 16, 2022

Collaborating with Save the Children to tackle Child Labor

May 24, 2022

Taking action to protect and restore forests

Apr 29, 2022

Achieving 100% traceability across our direct global cocoa supply chain

Sep 21, 2021

Putting children first in cocoa

Jun 11, 2021

Our progress towards tackling deforestation in cocoa

May 4, 2021

Create World’s Largest Sustainable Commercial Cocoa Farm

Apr 21, 2021

Cocoa Compass targets for 100% child labour and deforestation monitoring

Apr 14, 2021

Olam Cocoa hits 100% traceability target across its direct global supply chain

Sep 21, 2020

Disclosure of cooperative suppliers in Côte d’Ivoire

Jul 16, 2020

Educating children on COVID-19 prevention

Jul 2, 2020

Meet Augustin, he’s supporting cocoa farmers and their families

Jun 12, 2020

Helping cocoa farming communities across Africa fight COVID-19

May 18, 2020

Working together to put children first in Côte d’Ivoire

May 1, 2020

One intervention is not enough in the fight against child labour

Apr 3, 2020

Taking the pain out of pruning

Mar 13, 2020

Empowering women is essential for having a positive impact on the future

Mar 9, 2020

Olam Cocoa introduces the first professionalised child labour monitoring

Mar 6, 2020

Investing in Nature with the Cocoa Forest Project in Pará, Brazil

Feb 24, 2020

ofi introduces the first professionalised child labour monitoring and remediation to Cameroon

Feb 5, 2020

Olam Cocoa and Rainforest Alliance educate school children in Côte d'Ivoire

Jan 24, 2020

How do we sustain a growing population without sacrificing our natural resources?

Jan 9, 2020

Finance for the future: how cocoa farmers are saving to send their kids

Jun 12, 2019

Half a year on from Indonesia’s double disaster

Apr 2, 2019

How to keep more of the world's forests intact

Mar 21, 2019

Olam Cocoa strengthens its commitment to end deforestation in global cocoa supply chain

Mar 8, 2019

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