Sales increase for cocoa products with the Fairtrade seal

Study proves: Fairtrade contributes to rising incomes of cocoa farmers

31-Jan-2022 - Germany

Just under 74,000 tons of cocoa products bearing the Fairtrade seal were sold in Germany in 2021. This is the current forecast of the non-profit association Fairtrade Germany on the occasion of the International Sweets and Biscuits Fair ISM in Cologne. This corresponds to a growth of 9 percent compared to the previous year, according to the projection. This includes chocolate, but also cookies or cocoa powder with the seal. The market share of Fairtrade cocoa in Germany is around 16 percent.

"Fairtrade is a purchasing argument for customers, which is an important signal," says Dieter Overath, CEO of Fairtrade Germany. "Inflation, rising production and transport costs, pandemic consequences, climate crisis - it's a whole bundle of challenges that people in cocoa farming are facing. We appeal to the entire confectionery industry to take responsibility, to stop increasing price pressure and to step up efforts to improve the incomes of families, especially in West African cocoa farming."

Incomes urgently need to rise. Fairtrade partners lead the way

A recent study shows that Fairtrade has been proven to help increase household incomes in the cocoa sector in Côte d'Ivoire. According to the study, incomes in the households of Fairtrade cocoa cooperatives studied have increased by about 85 percent over the past four years. The researchers also found that the households studied increased their production by about 43 percent as well as broadened their income sources by diversifying their cultivation.

Still, poverty remains a massive problem. "We want to continue to increase demand for Fairtrade cocoa so that certified cooperatives can sell their entire harvest as Fairtrade and benefit from stable minimum prices and the additional financial premium of the Fairtrade premium," Overath said. "But we want to achieve more: That's why we have projects with partners who voluntarily pay higher prices and take steps with us toward living incomes." Among them are Tony's Chocolonely, Jokolade, Rewe, Lidl and Aldi.

Anniversary: Fairtrade Germany celebrates 30th anniversary

Fairtrade Deutschland e.V. turns 30 this year. What started as a small niche has developed into a global movement. The first product to carry the Fairtrade seal was coffee. Chocolate goods with fair cocoa have been available since 1995. Just ten years ago, the market share in this country was around one percent, but now about one in six cocoa beans processed in Germany is Fairtrade-certified. In 2020, cocoa cooperatives in West Africa, Asia and Latin America received 12 million euros in Fairtrade premiums from sales to the German market alone. The premium is a financial supplement paid for Fairtrade sales in addition to the Fairtrade minimum price and is used for community projects

Note: This article has been translated using a computer system without human intervention. LUMITOS offers these automatic translations to present a wider range of current news. Since this article has been translated with automatic translation, it is possible that it contains errors in vocabulary, syntax or grammar. The original article in German can be found here.

https://www.yumda.com/en/news/1174552/sales-increase-for-cocoa-products-with-the-fairtrade-seal.html