FDBusiness.com

Barry Callebaut, the world’s leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products, has published its new sustainability strategy “Forever Chocolate” with the ambition to move sustainable chocolate from niche to norm in less than a decade.

In order to secure the future of chocolate, Barry Callebaut’s new sustainability strategy includes four targets that the company expects to achieve by 2025 and that address the biggest sustainability challenges in the chocolate supply chain:

1 Eradicate child labor from its supply chain;

2 Lift more than 500,000 cocoa farmers out of poverty

3 Become carbon and forest positive

4 Have 100% sustainable ingredients in all its products.

Antoine de Saint-Affrique, chief executive of Barry Callebaut, comments: “We have been pioneering sustainability in cocoa and chocolate for many years, and we have made great progress. But despite all our efforts, only 23% of the cocoa beans we source are from sustainability programs. We are determined to step change this and have 100% of our chocolate and its ingredient sustainably sourced by 2025.”

Antoine de Saint-Affrique elaborates: “The targets we have set ourselves after a thorough materiality analysis are bold, and we recognize that we do not have all the answers. What we know for sure is that we cannot reach these targets by ourselves. That is why we intend to start a movement that also includes governments, NGOs, consumers and our customers. Sustainable chocolate is as much about governments creating an enabling policy environment and enforcing legislation, NGOs creating awareness and consumers making sustainable choices, as it is about industry commitment and investment. ‘Forever Chocolate’ is an open invitation to work with us in finding structural solutions to the sustainability challenges in the chocolate supply chain. Without sustainability, there cannot be growth. By taking on the challenges we face as an industry, we will make ‘Forever Chocolate’ a reality.”

Barry Callebaut will publish each year a report on the progress it is making towards the four targets it has defined.

With annual sales of about SFr6.7 billion (Eur 6.1 billion) in fiscal year 2015/16, the Zurich-based Barry Callebaut Group operates more than 50 production facilities worldwide and employs close to 10,000 people. The Barry Callebaut Group serves the entire food industry, from industrial food manufacturers to artisanal and professional users of chocolate, such as chocolatiers, pastry chefs, bakers, hotels, restaurants or caterers. The two global brands catering to the specific needs of these Gourmet customers are Callebaut® and Cacao Barry®.