CACAO-TRACE: TOGETHER FOR A BETTER FUTURE FOR COCOA AND CHOCOLATE
Around the globe, close to 50 million people are dependent on cocoa for their livelihoods. On average, cocoa farmers earn less than €2 per day, an income below the poverty line. The Cacao-Trace program trains farmers and helps them to deliver cocoa beans of superior quality, increasing their revenue through a premium price and a chocolate bonus of €0.10 per kilo of chocolate, on top of conventional farm gate price. Today the premium price and chocolate bonus add up to the equivalent of 3 to 4 extra months of salary. Since its creation in 2014 by Puratos, the Cacao-Trace program is active in many countries around the world1 and aims to increase its net positive social and environmental impact on the cocoa supply chain. Cacao-Trace positively impacts farmers communities in San Pedro region. Not only do farmers receive a quality premium for cocoa beans meeting Cacao-Trace standards, but the unique chocolate bonus programs has already funded several projects which includes providing 500 educational scholarships farmer’s children and building 3 water stations, 2 schools and 1 fully equipped maternity building.
Puratos is strongly committed to sustainably sourcing cocoa, with continuous efforts to end deforestation related to cocoa and to strive for a living income for cocoa growers. By 2030, 100% of Puratos Group cocoa ingredients will be sustainably sourced, 30 % of cocoa ingredient will be sourced through the Cacao-Trace Program.
Puratos has recently closed on a €1 billion financing from a group of private investors including Barings as the lead account. The first draw of the financing will be used to further accelerate the Cacao-Trace program.
