UTZ and International Cocoa Initiative bolster alliance
UTZ has become the first organisation to join the International Cocoa Initiative (ICP) as a non-profit contributing partner.
The two organisations have been working together since 2013 to increase child protection in the cocoa supply chain. They also collaborate to ensure that the UTZ certification approach supports emerging practices for tackling child labour.
As a result of their collaborative work, UTZ has added the approach of prevention, monitoring and remediation to its code of conduct. The approach is based on the ICI’s model for child labour monitoring and remediation and was developed with ICI’s input.
Under the new partnership arrangement, the organisations will continue to examine how UTZ’s enhanced model can serve as a vehicle for the sustainable scale up of such models, enabling certification to further the expansion of suitable practices in aiding child protection and reducing child labour.
Nick Weatherill, executive director of ICI, says, “UTZ have been a solid partner of ICI’s for many years, but this new agreement will take our collaboration to a new level. We believe this partnership represents a new way for ICI to partner with a wider circle of stakeholders which will be both innovative and impactful.”
Han de Groot, executive director at UTZ, adds, “This will not only strengthen the relationship between our two organisations but also contribute to having an even bigger impact on farming communities and children in particular.”
