In its biennial review of the cocoa sector, the VOICE Network found cocoa farming communities are still battling the effects of poverty, child labor and deforestation.

Guittard Chocolate Co. is launching the Cultivate Better cocoa initiative, a new program that engages with cocoa-growing communities to improve and protect unique flavor profiles while also developing integrated community initiatives that yield collaborative impact traceable to the farm level.

In celebration of Women’s Equality Day on Aug. 26, Fairtrade America highlights the progress made by its gender equality initiatives across the globe while continuing to strengthen its role as an ally to women in farming communities.

Though Africa supplies 70 percent of the world’s cocoa, the “statistical equivalent of 0 percent” of the world’s chocolate is produced there, says Tim McCollum, founder of Beyond Good. He's hoping to change that.

Nestlé UK and Ireland will begin sourcing Rainforest Alliance-certified cocoa for the KitKat brand in October 2020 after a decade of sourcing Fairtrade-certified cocoa.

Fairtrade International’s West Africa Programme is training more cocoa farmers, generating greater understanding of Fairtrade Standards and selling more Fairtrade cocoa after intensive training, according to a new report the organization released last week.

Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate’s 2018-2019 Sustainability Progress Report highlights the company’s efforts to improve transparency and the lives of cocoa farmers in Brazil, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Indonesia.

Fairtrade International says sales of Fairtrade-certified cocoa from Côte d’Ivoire in the fourth quarter of 2019 increased farmers’ earnings by approximately $15.1 million compared to non-Fairtrade cocoa.

Barry Callebaut has announced that in fiscal year 2018/19 it sourced 51 percent of its ingredients sustainably, up from 44 percent the previous year.