13 September 2011 – Barry Callebaut and Biolands International, one of Africa’s largest exporters of certified organic cocoa, have announced the joint launch of a new website highlighting Biolands’ decade of achievements in the cocoa sector in Tanzania.

On www.biolands.com Barry Callebaut customers can learn how the Biolands program is enabling cocoa farmers to improve their livelihoods through the production of cocoa that meets the rigorous requirements of organic, IMO Fair for Life, and, most recently, Rainforest Alliance certifications as well as the high cocoa quality standards of Barry Callebaut.

Founded in 1999, Biolands has been working directly with farmers in the Mbeya region in Tanzania for more than 10 years to produce high quality, fully traceable certified cocoa. More than 20,000 farmers are currently registered in the program. A GPS tracking application ensures that each bag of cocoa can be traced to the farmer who produced it. Participating farmers agree to grow cocoa according to organic practices, while Biolands provides a range of support services and guarantees accurate weighing and fair prices for the cocoa delivered. Biolands offers farmers training, technical advice, supplies of seedlings and pruning equipment, and has sponsored the planting of more than one million cocoa trees as well as diverse shade trees.

Barry Callebaut has been buying Biolands’ top grade certified organic cocoa since 2000, when it first became available. Tanzanian cocoa is prized by culinary professionals for its unique flavor profile. In 2008, Barry Callebaut acquired a 49% stake in Biolands, and, based on the success of the program in Tanzania, supported the expansion of Biolands’ farmer centric business model to West Africa. The new cocoa production enterprises established in Sierra Leone in 2008 and in Côte d’Ivoire in 2009 had together registered more 50,000 farmers by year end 2010.