When small scale farmers in developing countries secure contracts with large international buyers, they are protecting themselves against certain risks such as short term-price fluctuations and other market uncertainties. However there are certain conditions that must be met to keep all parties...
The cocoa production and marketing in West Africa (specifically Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana) is presented. Tabular information on the structure of the cocoa industries in 8 major cocoa producing countries is provided, including that of Brazil, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Ecuador, Ghana, Indonesia,...
When Unilever and other large international companies decided in 2009 to choose Rainforest Alliance (RA) certification for some of their chocolate brands, the scheme had to radically extend its reach and scale up certification efforts in order to meet projected demand. Since more than half the...
In Ghana, the liberalization of internal marketing started in 1992 with the introduction of private Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs) as competitors to the state-owned monopoly in buying cocoa from farmers. Thus, Ghana’s state-owned Marketing Board (Cocobod) still controls external marketing....
In an effort to increase growth. employment and diversify fanner portfolios and exports in Liberia. the government is currently focused on opportunities in smallholder tree crops. Smallholder cocoa has the potential to benefit a wide population of farmers by increasing income opportunities and...
Interlinked loans intended for the purchase of agrochemicals are an institutional innovation that evolved in Nigeria and southwest Cameroon following cocoa market liberalization. Since liberalization, an estimated $30 million market for fungicides and insecticides has developed. To increase...
This bulletin is about the challenges and opportunities of ‘farmers as shareholders’, that is, including small-scale farmers’ groups and associations in the ownership of companies that add value and market their produce. Detailed cases are provided which examine the ‘state of the art’ in this...
This paper builds on recent publications and on-going debates from a number of practitioners and advocates of responsible and sustainable purchasing practices in the cocoa sector where sustainability is an area of growing concern for both the cocoa producing countries and the chocolate...
This book shows how sustainable procurement by Western companies in global value chains can be increased in such a way that all chain actors, including the poor, benefit. It presents three cases of businesses that procure supplies of ginger, mango, and citrus from Sierra Leone, Mali and South...
KPMG study concludes cocoa farmers and traders can benefit through investing in certification of cocoa production. Via this page you will have access to the full research report that KPMG developed to analyze and understand the cost and benefits of certifying sustainable cocoa farming.