Cocoa sector webinar places traceability atop its agenda
Colombia's Cordillera Chocolate, which works with a number of cooperatives in its native country, will be co-hosting a webinar on traceability. Pic: Cordillera
Traceability in the cocoa sector is set to be placed under the microscope in a joint industry webinar being staged tomorrow, Wednesday, 29, October, as the sector grapples with a raft of major challenges.
The event, hosted jointly between Cordillera Chocolate and CocoaRadar newsletter, comes as issues of EUDR compliance and value creation are taking centre stage atop of the global agenda.
As tensions continue over plans for the implementation of the European Union Deforestation Regulation, companies across the sector are nevertheless racing to implement geolocation, legality, and transparency protocols. But for Cordillera and CocoaRadar, traceability is not just about compliance — it is a strategic opportunity to rewire the industry from the farm up.
“Traceability is no longer a back-office function. It’s the new business card of cocoa,” said Anthony Myers, Editor of CocoaRadar. “With regulatory timelines tightening and consumer demand for ethical sourcing growing, the companies that treat traceability as a competitive advantage — not just a checkbox — will lead the next chapter in cocoa.”
The 90-minute session, which is at 130pm UK time, is via a registration at the following link: cocoaradar.com/beyond-compliance-traceability-as-the-future-of-cocoa-sustainability/ and will explore both regulatory and field-level perspectives, with Cordillera sharing insights from its origin-based operations in Colombia and other speakers weighing in from the technology, policy, and sourcing sides of the equation.
Confirmed speakers include Alejandro Gil: Procurement and Agricultural Development Director, Cordillera Chocolate, Juan Lezaca: Expert, EUDR, Team Leader Traceability for export products and sustainability in Colombia( EU), Cataliza Gonzalez: Sustainability Manager, Albrecht & Dill, Rondey Muriuki: Farmforce. Global Sales Director, and Daniel Arancibia: LATAM Director, Proforest.
The session will be moderated by Anthony Myers: Editor, CocoaRadar, Moderator, with its core topics including Cordillera Chocolate: Case study on building traceability systems at origin, Traceability under the EUDR: What the EU Requires—and What Industry Must Deliver, Building Transparent Cocoa Supply Chains, and a Panel Discussion: Buyer perspectives, NGO voices, and the future of interoperable systems.
The EUDR is set to be introduced this December, though political pushback had threatened to extend it by a further year (after it was already delayed a year this year), and comes as origin countries, traders, and brands are under increasing pressure to deliver plot-level transparency.
“At Cordillera, traceability is the cornerstone of effective action, not just a compliance checklist. It provides the essential ground-level information on the farms from which we source our cocoa. This knowledge is what allows us to prioritise initiatives and maximise the efficiency of every development programme,” said Cordillera Spokesperson Alejandro Gil.
