Mars delivers latest CFI forests cocoa sustainability progress report
Mars Wrigley has joined major confectionery groups in releasing its latest Cocoa and Forests (CFI) Initiative report, detailing key progress towards delivering a deforestation-free cocoa supply chain within West Africa by 2025, reports Neill Barston.
The company said it remained committed to the scheme, which was jointly initiated by the World Cocoa Foundation alongside governments of Ghana and Ivory Coast in 2017, and signed by a total of 35 sector businesses and civil organisations.
As previously reported by Confectionery Production, the companies’ combined action comes in response to studies that found a total of concerning levels of deforestation continuing within the region over the past two decades. The cocoa sector has been held in part responsible for this, as well illegal activity on farmland including mining, which the Ghanaian government recently issued a crackdown on with financial rewards for those reporting such issues.
Mars has reflected on its actions over the past two years, as well as detailing its proposed work until 2022 set against three CFI pillars of Forest Protection and Restoration, Sustainable Production and Farmer Livelihoods, and Community Engagement and Social Inclusion.
The company said it was working with suppliers and technical expert organisations to implement these action plans, which are linked to its Cocoa for Generations report that examines its broader global sourcing policies.
Regarding forest protection, in 2020, the company mapped 110,912 plots and 94,448 farms we source in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana and are working with suppliers with the aim of mapping 100% of farms sourced from. In addition, around 265,746 hectares in its cocoa supply chain were included in a deforestation risk assessment – an area roughly the size of Luxembourg.
Some 19,172 farmers in its supply chain now apply agroforestry techniques. Our programs distributed 913,513 multi-purpose trees, bringing the total to 1.4 million since 2018.
On farmer livelihoods, the company revealed that it reached 92,229 farmers with training in Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) in 2020, keeping it on track to meet its targets in Ivory Coast and exceeding a target in Ghana due to the increased number of farmers within its Responsible Cocoa programme.
As the company explained, its suppliers tailor the GAP training they deliver to ensure it meets real-world farmer needs. In Ghana a total of 1.2 million improved cocoa seedlings to farmers were distributed. Furthermore, this past year, 13,809 members participated in over 400 village savings and loan associations (VSLAs) in our cocoa supply chains in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.
Though COVID-19 made it hard to access cocoa-farming communities, the company believed good progress had been made in training farmers and engaging communities on preserving forests.
Among its core elements, the business said it expected to start introducing active forest restoration and protection programmes in cocoa-growing communities further into 2021. Its focus for social inclusion is to empower women in its supply chain and communities. As Mars noted, unequal gender norms hold back girls and young women in cocoa-growing communities in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, while research shows that unlocking opportunities for women benefits communities and businesses.
Agroforestry
Moreover, Mars has partnered with PUR Project, an agroforestry expert organisation to address deforestation and improve livelihoods of smallholder cocoa farmers in Côte d’Ivoire in line with CFI’s “Forest Protection and Restoration” and “Sustainable Production and Farmer Livelihoods” pillars.
Their work began in 2019 with field assessments to identify the causes of deforestation, the results of which led to the implementation of community-based agroforestry projects within cocoa-sourcing communities. These projects aim to restore ecosystems such as soil fertility, biodiversity and microclimates, and foster sustainable farming practices to help stabilise cocoa yields and improve farmer income. Another goal is to provide alternative sources of income for farmers and improve their economic resilience. More than 650 farmers participated in 2020.
