Chocoa concludes with spotlight on supporting cocoa’s ‘invisible farmers’

The Chocoa event in Amsterdam continued its second day yesterday (Friday), with some engaging evaluation of the future of the industry, and how agricultural workers must be placed at the heart of policy making, writes Tony Myers.

Notably, the event formed a significant centrepiece for week-long sector activities in the city, which this year celebrates its 750th anniversary, having retained its status as a major agricultural trading hub.

In the opening session of the Amsterdam Sustainable Conference, farmers and producers were given the stage to express their thoughts on the event and conditions for workers in cocoa’s indirect supply chain. The session followed on from a special ‘Farmers’ Day’ as part of Amsterdam Cocoa Week and was an international gathering of the cocoa farming community.

Gerald Bagonza from the Bwamba Coop Union in Uganda (below), highlighted the need for a platform for cocoa farmers to share knowledge, experiences, and linkages with stakeholders in the cocoa value chain. He said farmers have emphasised the necessity of access to crop finance, diversified income sources, and customised loan products.

They also requested information and tools to comply with EU regulations and incentives for sustainable practices like organic and climate-smart agriculture. Attachment to farmers’ produce, such as promoting cocoa powder over coffee, was suggested to ensure farmers benefit directly.

The farmers expressed gratitude for the platform provided by Chocoa to interact with various stakeholders and stressed the importance of their inclusion in decision-making related to cocoa.

A South American farmer group representative explained they were concerned about the forthcoming EUDR regulations. Many farmers do not have legal documentation to prove ownership of their farm, which is crucial for compliance documentation, even though it has been in the family for generations.

There were concerns around organic certification processes, cacao quality in the face of enormous demand for beans, and the fact that mono-culture farming threatened farms across the cocoa belt and made pod disease more likely without good agro-forestry practices.

A farmer representative from Cote d’Ivoire was concerned about climate change, EUDR, and farmer income. “We have to act quickly on climate change; it affects everyone in the supply chain, not just farmers,” he said. Seasons are changing. When farmers plant new seedlings, there is no rain, or then too much rain followed by sun, which affects the development of new trees.

“The cocoa farmer is alone in tackling issues, with no support. And should not be solely responsible for cocoa. It’s an industry-wide problem. The. Farmer/producer should be central to discussions on price.

“Money is not a gift; the farmer needs access to money to do his job and provide for his family, and production will be more sustainable.”

He highlighted that Productivity in Cote’divoire is roughly 2million tonnes annually, but last year there was a deficit of 200,000 tons. He explained that the problem is that because the trees are old, the farmers are old, and the land is becoming drier. What is needed is a change in agricultural practices, more investment in innovation, and more support for the producer.

The second session of the morning came under the banner of ‘Invisible farmers’ and what factors put people at risk? (main image).

In terms of the scope of forced labour, moderator Anna Laven said the industry knows too little about the majority of producers in the supply chain, and there is a whole ‘hidden’ network of workers. This knowledge gap is problematic. Undocumented workers have few rights to welfare access, for example, she explained.

Anika Altaf, executive director Include Knowledge Platform, and co-moderator of this session, said work funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs-funded Knowledge Platform focused on evidence-based policy-making for inclusive development in Africa.

She discussed a recent meeting with policymakers, private sector representatives, and civil society organisations, highlighting the need to address a significant knowledge gap regarding local farmers and workers.

Atlaf emphasised the importance of a community approach to better understand and support these groups rather than just focusing on registered farmers. Additionally, there was a suggestion to leverage existing policies rather than viewing them as obstacles. Her overall message to the conference was to adopt an open-minded, innovative approach to tackle the challenges of hidden marginalisation.

Selma Van der Haar from KIT, presented the first results of a KIT Cocoa Household Income Study for farmers in Cote d’Ivoire, which attempts to give more insight into income for specific groups of invisible farmers in a specific landscape.

“We see that within the cocoa sector, a lot of data is already being collected by different actors. There are some issues, namely, not all of this data is always shareable, and also it’s not always aligned,” she said.

“So we hope that by creating more aligned methodologies, for example, we can create more impact, and the initiative consists of several phases.”

Van der Haar said the study started with a first scoping phase, where it interacted with different actors in the sector. Then, there is the development of a methodology that everybody in the sector can use to measure household incomes and identify living income gaps, for example. The methodology was published last year and everybody can use it, she stressed.

“The aim is to align a way of collecting incomes, data on the cost of incomes. Some of the things we put in there are, for example, improved measurement of the cost of production.

“We try to include the situations of different sharecroppers specifically. We also give guidance on how to measure non-cocoa income.

“We want to stress that we identify everybody who cultivates cocoa as a farmer, irrespective of their land-holding status or gender. And we also made some specific suggestions towards how to include invisible groups,” she explained. Valerie Janssen, a researcher at Wageningen University, mentioned that The World Cocoa Foundation is funding a study to understand the income of cocoa farmers, particularly those not part of cooperatives, who comprise over 50% of farmers in the landscape.She said these farmers often go unreported in official statistics.

The study uses geospatial random sampling to locate and survey farmers. Initial assumptions suggest these farmers might be more vulnerable, and sharecroppers, especially those in the indirect supply chain, might face challenges in joining cooperatives. She said the study aims to uncover the role of cocoa in their livelihoods and access to services and sustainability programmes.

Joost Backer, sustainability consultant at New Foresight/Wagemap gave an introduction to his research and discussed the importance of living wages in agri-commodity sectors, emphasising the need for visibility of workers in supply chains.

He said NewForesight aims for living incomes for farmers, living wages for workers, and regenerative agriculture. He said that the living wage, defined by the International Labor Organisation, should be context-specific and achieved through negotiation.

“Wagemap seeks to harmonise living wage data and methodologies, aiming for a globally accessible database. Backer highlighted the need to include informal workers and address broader economic issues to achieve fair wages and reduce risks like deforestation and forced labour in the cocoa sector.

Andrew Asamoah, project manager, International Cocoa Initiative, focused on forced labour in the cocoa sector, highlighting ICI’s efforts to address it. A 2018 Work Free Foundation study estimated 1.5 million child labourers in Cote d’Ivoire, with 16,000 in forced labour. In Ghana, 14,000 children were estimated to be in forced labour. He said key issues of concern include underpayment, additional tasks without reward, and threats of dismissal.

Asamoah explained that ICI’s strategies include strengthening community collaboration, formalising contracts, and setting up community-level grievance mechanisms. These efforts aim to improve labour rights awareness, protect workers, and ensure fair practices in the cocoa sector.

Oyinkansola Owoyemi, Sunbeth Global Concept Limited, sustainability director, discussed the challenges faced by Nigerian cocoa farmers, emphasizing their invisibility and the unique supply chain in Nigeria. “Despite being the fourth largest cocoa exporter globally, Nigerian farmers struggle with poor wages, limited access to finance, and frequent policy changes that they feel are not inclusive,” she said.

She also highlighted the need for improved income, better community support, and affordable financing, and stressed the importance of training, education, and collaboration to build trust and ensure sustainable practices.

“The goal is to enhance farmers’ livelihoods, improve community development, and foster a mutually beneficial industry,” she said. Furthermore, she highlighted that Sunbeth’s priorities include: Explore ways to improve the income and labour conditions of cocoa farmers in Nigeria, Investigate opportunities for affordable financing options for Nigerian cocoa farmers, Develop training and education programs to build trust and support for cocoa farmers, Increase collaboration between industry players to address the challenges faced by cocoa farmers

Capturing carbon markets

For the third session of the day, the event focused on Innovations in carbon finance and making carbon finance work for farmers. Joost Gorter, ACT Commodities, Global Director, co-moderator of this session emphasised the importance of keeping discussions concise and concrete, especially when addressing the carbon finance space’s market size and financial aspects.

He highlighted the challenge of estimating how much money could go to cocoa within this context. He said that his company deals with various types of credits, including carbon credits, which are one method of generating financial resources for climate change mitigation.

Gorter mentioned that most of its business operates in the compliance market, where regulations dictate actions, contrasting this with the voluntary nature of the carbon credit market, which makes discussions more challenging due to the lack of legal mandates.

Mercy Owusu Ansah (below), director Tropenbos, Ghana said Tropenbos focuses on cocoa and timber in Ghana, aiming to integrate knowledge for sustainable forestry. She said the World Bank’s $50 million (€48.16m) emission reduction payment agreement in 2019 targeted reducing 50,000 tons of carbon.

Ghana’s achievements spanned 11 years. And Tropenbos promotes climate-smart agriculture, agroforestry, and waste-to-energy conversion. The benefits are shared, she said, with farmers receiving 69% of carbon payments, while 31% goes to other stakeholders.

Despite minimal carbon finance ($1 per farmer annually), community projects and NGO technical assistance support local efforts, emphasizing the need for additional funding and government linkages.

She said one of her company’s aims is to continue promoting climate-smart agriculture, agroforestry, and diversified production systems to reduce emissions.

Greg D’Allesandre, from Dandelion Chocolate and co-founder of Terraton, the first Carbon-ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) solution provider, discussed the company’s mission to convert agricultural waste into carbon credits through biochar production.

Biochar, a stable, carbon-rich material, sequesters carbon and enhances soil productivity. D’Allesandre said that, unlike direct air capture, biochar credits range from $100 to $200 per ton, currently valued at $155 per ton. A medium-scale biochar facility can process 15,000 tons of waste annually, generating $850,000 in revenue and $350,000 in profit. Terraton aims to support biochar businesses with software and services, exemplified by their collaboration with Three Mountains Cocoa in Ghana.

Gert Crielaard (centre, below), lead consultant Imset, explained the challenges and opportunities for small farmer organisations to engage in carbon markets. He emphasised the importance of leveraging supply chain partnerships, such as with Microsoft for biochar projects and tailoring monitoring frameworks to buyer preferences.

He highlighted the need for pre-financing, suggesting ground funding from NGOs or governments to maximize carbon revenues. Crielaard provided an example of a collaborative insetting project in Indonesia’s coconut supply chain, co-funded by the Dutch government and a corporate partner, to demonstrate the feasibility of small-scale carbon projects.

Alan Kroeger, director Nature & Climate, Satelligence said the insetting topic was interesting, and he discussed the scalability and benefits of bilateral deal-making in the context of international trade and carbon markets. He highlighted the finalisation of Article 6 rules at the Climate COP in Azerbaijan. He emphasized the importance of a country-by-country approach, noting the recent launch of a new bureau of carbon markets in Cote d’Ivoire.

His conversation touched on the willingness of large companies to pay over $50 per ton for insetting to meet science-based targets and the potential for value capture in large value chains through agreements that reduce carbon intensity or promote carbon removals. He also mentioned the commercial and sustainability benefits for companies like McDonald’s and the potential for passing value through supply chains.

 

 

 

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