COCOA BEAN GROWING

Growing wholesale cocoa beans is no simple task, which is why we are working with cocoa farmers to help improve their farms. 90% of the world’s cocoa beans are harvested on small, family-run farms with less than two hectares of land and an average yield of just 600-800 kg per year. And most of this cocoa comes from West Africa. cocoa beans for sale

Low productivity, low farmer incomes and limited development in farming communities has created a cycle that must be broken for cocoa farming to be sustainable. cacao beans for sale

Cocoa is also a delicate, sensitive plant. It requires high rainfall and temperatures to grow, as well as rainforest trees to offer shade and protection from too much light and damage caused by wind. Because cocoa farms are sensitive to this type of climate, they can only flourish in a narrow band of countries between 20 degrees north and south of the equator. wholesale cocoa beans

As the one of the world’s largest chocolate makers, we have a stake in protecting these origins. We do so through Cocoa Life, which is active across all major cocoa origins from Africa to Asia to the Americas. We are committed to making a difference in these communities.

CLIMATE CHANGE RESILIENCE

Cocoa Life is committed to eliminating deforestation, maintaining cocoa ecosystems and protecting the land and the forests – it’s our promise to future generations. buy cacao beans

Cocoa farmers are already seeing the impacts of climate change and if we don’t take action, current cocoa-producing regions may no longer be suitable for cocoa production in the next 30 years.

Through Cocoa Life we invest in farmer training and adoption of good practices which can include agroforestry, mobilise communities to protect forests, plant trees and more. But we cannot do this alone. Partnerships are key to lasting change and we work together with the industry and governments to put the right policies and plans in place. buy cocoa beans wholesale

Could a Group of Farmers in Cameroon Signal a Change in the Cocoa Industry?

Africa produces more than 70% of the world’s cocoa, but the farmers at the core of the $100 billion+ industry are barely making enough money to survive. At the same time, cocoa farming is cacao beans for sale responsible for millions of hectares of deforestation, eliminating as much as three million hectares of forest between 1988 and 2008 alone.

“The idea is to make the value chain more sustainable,” says Ashleigh Burgess, Deputy Director of Programs at Trees for the Future, “because decades and decades of monocropping and a bottom-line approach have left the planet in bad shape and have left farmers really vulnerable.” cocoa beans for sale

Burgess and her colleagues at agroforestry nonprofit Trees for the Future (TREES) are part of a growing movement to embrace cocoa agroforestry: intercropping beneficial tree species and other crops alongside cocoa trees to improve soil fertility, sequester carbon, increase yields, improve nutrition, diversify farmers’ income opportunities, and improve their quality of life. wholesale cocoa beans

TREES is training the next generation of cocoa farmers in Cameroon with a goal to plant more than 500,000 agroforestry trees on 500 Cameroonian cocoa farms by 2021.

Trading Forests for Cocoa

The problem with cocoa as it is now (and other cash crops like palm, coffee, timber, and livestock) is the way it is grown. As Burgess points out, cocoa trees are grown with a monocrop intensification model in mind. Farmers clear the land to make room for row upon row of cocoa trees, and as plant and animal diversity disappear, so do the natural processes that keep the land healthy. Monocropped land loses fertility and the crops are susceptible to disease and insect plagues. buy cacao beans

“There are concerns about cocoa production continuing to drive deforestation,” says Ethan Budiansky, Director of Environment for the World Cocoa Foundation, “which is directly linked to issues pertaining to low productivity and the need to expand farms – old farms, diseased farms – just in order to maintain or increase overall cocoa production.” buy cocoa beans wholesale

With their livelihoods dependent on their crop, farmers spray chemical pesticides and fertilizers to improve the productivity of the dying land. But, ultimately, the solution is to clear a new section of land and start the cycle over again, a move that is counterintuitive to what cocoa needs to thrive.

“Cocoa is made to be a forest plant – it loves forests!” says Etelle Higonnet, Senior Campaign Director at Mighty Earth and lead on their cocoa campaign. “It thrives in and around forests and when there are no forests, you quickly see cocoa can’t last for long.”

As the climate changes, in large part due to these destructive farming practices, farmers themselves are some of the hardest hit by the effects of warming weather patterns. cocoa beans for sale

“There’s been a lot of research that shows that climate change is impacting the way that crops grow. Cocoa can’t grow if it’s too hot,” explains Burgess, adding that business as usual in the cocoa industry isn’t sustainable. “If industry players want to continue farming cocoa in 20 years, the approach to cocoa farming needs to change.” cacao beans for sale

Changing the Behavior of an Entire Industry

“[Agroforestry] should become the norm, not the exception,” says Higonnet. “This is how everyone should be operating, everyone in the cocoa sector should be focused on helping cocoa farmers transition from monoculture to agroforestry.” wholesale cocoa beans

While industry experts like TREES, Mighty Earth, and World Cocoa Foundation agree on the importance and promise of cocoa agroforestry, transitioning an entire industry from monoculture to agroforestry remains an uphill battle. buy cacao beans

“Clearly we’re in a world where the chemical-industrial complex is savvy, well-resourced, ruthless, and willing and able to, I think, twist and shape laws and government policies to their benefit and to the detriment of humanity and the planet,” Higonnet says.

Daunting policies and corporations pose significant challenges, but Love Cocoa founder James Cadbury is proof that there are some chocolate industry stakeholders who care about the impact they’re having on farmers and the planet. buy cocoa beans wholesale