Hershey’s West African sustainability programme reinstated after being banned marks a key milestone
With sustainability being firmly at the core of many companies’ agendas within the confectionery sector, the breaking news that Hershey had been banned from carrying out its activities supporting cocoa farmers in West Africa was hugely significant.
Major $10 billion income gap for Ghana and Ivory Coast farmers remains a critical sector goal
Delivering on cocoa supply chain sustainability remains the most single pressing task for major players within the confectionery industry, with an especially notable milestone having just been put down.
Key NORC report on child labour within cocoa supply reveals significant concerns still remain
It seems there’s rarely a week within the confectionery and wider food and drink market that passes without a major breaking issue that proves of significant impact and offers the industry plenty of reason to take a step back and reflect.
Dawn of the Living Income Differential’s potential major impact on West African cocoa farming
This past week has seen the key start of the latest cocoa season within West Africa, which sees the introduction of the Living Income Differential put forward by the governments of the Ivory Coast and Ghana to support farmers wages. In a guest blog, Kojo Hayford, managing editor of Ghana’s Cocoa Post, reflects on its potential impact.
Time is not on our side for delivering tangible change for cocoa sustainability in Ghana and Ivory Coast
Building on last week’s news of events within the cocoa sector, sustainability is once again making major headlines with regard to a landmark new declaration relating to key markets in Ghana and Ivory Coast.
Greater progress required on key schemes to lift African cocoa farmers from below poverty line
Edward Akapire, head of region, Fairtrade Africa West Africa Network, reflects his observations on the key improvements that need to be made within the cocoa sector that will deliver on the progress being made by farming reforms in Ghana and Ivory Coast.
Coronavirus pandemic may increase child labour, but a path to child-labour free cocoa exists
Child labour within the cocoa sector remains a key matter for the confectionery sector, with around 2 million children in Ghana and Ivory Coast alone said to be in some form of labour, despite the sector’s efforts to respond on the issue. In this guest blog Kunera Moore, Lead – tackling child labour at the Rainforest Alliance, offers some hope on this major issue.
Fairtrade report highlights urgent need for joint industry action on sustainability schemes
The latest set of studies from Fairtrade released this week into sustainability initiatives in core cocoa growing locations, including Ghana and Ivory Coast, have produced some extremely notable findings.