French-based Touton has released its sixth cocoa and forests report, revealing notable progress against its sustainability goals, as EUDR requirement deadlines draw closer, reports Neill Barston.

The latest internal analysis from the key agricultural commodities business comes amid a raft of European legislation governing deforestation, as well as corporate due diligence looms large on the horizon and is (in part) due begin to enter into force from the end of this year.

Among the company’s achievements in cocoa for the year have included assisting over 132,000 farms with technical assistance, and improving farming practices, as well as geomapping a total of 180,000 farms within its direct supply chain, as it seeks to enhance traceability.

In addition, the business confirmed a total of around 640,000 multipurpose trees distributed, and more than 64,000 hectares of cocoa agroforestry supported, contributing to more resilient farms and landscapes.

Notably, in recognition of the need to improve agricultural workers access to finance, it has aided some 29,000 people in cocoa communities through strengthening financial inclusion and supporting their efforts to advance farming techniques.

Furthermore, there have been 20,000 people participating in women’s empowerment schemes and community projects that help boost livelihoods and improve much-needed household budgets. In both Ghana and Ivory Coast, there are still many instances of farmers reportedly earning under $1 a day, which is a picture worsened by government decisions to reduce farm gate payments by 30% in Ghana and 60% in Ivory Coast, following the recent crash in prices over the past 12 months on international futures markets.

In response, the two governments have pledged to radically reshape the cocoa market, offering farmers 70% of traded prices, though if finally approved, would take a notable period of time to make an impact.

Cocoa & Forests Initiative
As a key cocoa operator, Touton noted, it has been part of the Cocoa & Forests initiative since 2017, in which a large collective of West African governments in Ghana and Ivory Coast, and fellow sector players including Barry Callebaut, Mondelez and Mars all signed up to its goals of notably reducing rates of deforestation.

In recent yeas, the scheme was rebooted in acknowledgement of the fact that greater scale and urgency is required to address the major problem that both Ghana and Ivory Coast face – that between 80 and 90% of their respective primary forests have been lost during the past sixty years from a combination of industrial activity including cocoa production, logging, and illegal gold mining operations impacting on the environnment.

As the company explained, it has devised its Pact standards targeting creating greater shared value for all within its supply chains. 

This new framework is reportedly based on three core andone cross-cutting pillar, each one divided into areas of interventions to deliver impact at every level.

As the business confirmed, all interventions follow supply chain-specific operating procedures, and include audits run by a recognised third-party verification organisation. Crucially, the company asserted that its framework aligns with with multiple certification criteria and is compliant with European and international regulatory requirements with regard to EUDR which is due to come into force at the end of December 2026.