A significant sustainability move has been confirmed by Cargill, as the global agribusiness commits to becoming part of Tony’s Chocolonely’s Open Chain cocoa sourcing model, reports Neill Barston.

The partnership with the Dutch impact firm is due to start in pilot form early next year, and is founded on five core supply principles designed to better support farmers in Ivory Coast and Ghana.

This includes a focus on forging long-term partnerships with cocoa co-operatives, tackling deforestation, committing to 100% traceability of bean sourcing, paying a premium to workers, as well as professionalising the industry with direct support to farmers.

Moreover, raising productivity levels is also part of its mission, with the Netherlands chocolate company so far attracting more than two dozen “Mission allies” ranging from Ben and Jerrys ice cream, through to Waitrose supermarket in the UK.

As Cargill noted, the partnership combines Tony’s Open Chain’s proven impact model with the global agri-company’s scale, customer network and processing expertise.

Furthermore, one of the key benefits of the agreement is that it taps into a shared goal of delivering sourcing practices that are at the root causes of exploitation in cocoa, and help address issues including child labour, which remains within West African supply chains.

As Cargill observed, the roles between itself and Tony’s will remain clear – Tony’s remains responsible for working directly with partner cooperatives and farming communities, and for implementing and monitoring sourcing principles. Cargill uses its technical capabilities and infrastructure to process Tony’s Open Chain cocoa into cocoa and chocolate products for Mission Allies, which continue to grow within retail sectors across Europe.

Speaking on the initiative, Cargill noted on social media: “Customers are looking for more diverse cocoa sourcing options that fir their business goals. That’s why we are partnering with Tony’s Open Chain to develop an additional sourcing option for Mission Allies.

“Turning sustainability commitments into sourcing choices takes collaboration across the cocoa value chain. The partnership brings Tony’s Open Chain’s 5 Sourcing Principles together with Cargill’s scale, technical expertise, extensive experience across the cocoa supply chain and long-standing investment in sustainability.”