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The cocoa commitment sustainability program

Defining effective practices, supporting farmers, making cocoa traceable

In order to tackle the sustainability challenges in sourcing cocoa, we develop and implement effective measures tailor-made for the respective growing regions, as the situation varies considerably from one area to another. These measures improve the financial and social conditions on the farms and in the village communities while also protecting nature and the climate.

What does cocoa commitment stand for?

The KRÜGER GROUP is the initiator of the cocoa commitment sustainability program, which is open to all brands. With this program, we are dedicated to developing and implementing effective solutions to the challenges of sustainability in cocoa farming. Growers receive training in how to achieve good harvests in an environmentally friendly manner. The program builds on established certifications, like those from the Rainforest Alliance and Fairtrade, supplementing them with further measures and the promotion of Good Agricultural Practice (GAP), with training programs in sustainable agroforestry, the reforesting of croplands, and the protection of primeval forests. Purchasing cocoa commitment products sustainably supports farmers in the countries of origin.

A core element is the traceability of the raw cocoa and the raw cocoa volumes, from the farms to the KRÜGER GROUP’s own cocoa-processing factory in Germany, where cocoa powder, cocoa butter, and cocoa mass are made from the cocoa beans. The program is open to processing companies and trade partners so that as many farmers as possible may benefit from it.

We have made a good start, but there is still a long way to go. Products that bear the cocoa commitment seal are manufactured in part with cocoa grown from the cocoa commitment sustainability program. The cocoa from the program is certified by the Rainforest Alliance or Fairtrade, and additionally fulfills the sustainability measures of cocoa commitment. In this way, consumers can rest assured that their favorite branded products have been produced responsibly. By 2030, all cocoa-containing brand-name products of the KRÜGER GROUP will be required to obtain their cocoa through cocoa commitment.

The cocoa commitment program

Defining effective practices, supporting farmers, making cocoa traceable

In order to tackle the sustainability challenges in sourcing cocoa, we develop and implement effective measures tailor-made for the respective growing regions, as the situation varies considerably from one area to another. These measures improve the financial and social conditions on the farms and in the village communities while also protecting nature and the climate.

What does cocoa commitment stand for?

The KRÜGER GROUP is the initiator of the cocoa commitment sustainability program, which is open to all brands. With this program, we are dedicated to developing and implementing effective solutions to the challenges of sustainability in cocoa farming. Growers receive training in how to achieve good harvests in an environmentally friendly manner. The program builds on established certifications, like those from the Rainforest Alliance and Fairtrade, supplementing them with further measures and the promotion of Good Agricultural Practice (GAP), with training programs in sustainable agroforestry, the reforesting of croplands, and the protection of primeval forests. Purchasing cocoa commitment products sustainably supports farmers in the countries of origin.

A key element of this is the traceability of raw cocoa and raw cocoa volumes. The program is open to processing companies and trade partners so that as many farmers as possible may benefit from it.

We have made a good start, but there is still a long way to go. Products that bear the cocoa commitment seal are manufactured in part with cocoa grown from the cocoa commitment sustainability program. The cocoa from the program is certified by the Rainforest Alliance or Fairtrade, and additionally fulfills the sustainability measures of cocoa commitment. In this way, consumers can rest assured that their favorite branded products have been produced responsibly. By 2030, all cocoa-containing brand-name products of the KRÜGER GROUP will be required to obtain their cocoa through cocoa commitment.

The aims of
cocoa commitment

With cocoa commitment, we want to take a significant step toward marketing exclusively sustainably sourced cocoa in the future. We intend to achieve this goal through our active engagement in cocoa-growing countries. We seek to improve the income and living situations of families—especially of women—as well as prevent exploitative child labor practices and raise educational standards. To protect the environment, we strive to prevent the logging of rainforests, convert from conventional cultivation to climate-resilient agroforestry with high biodiversity, reforest fallow land, and reduce the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. We undertake all of these efforts so that local communities can prosper, now and in the future.

© Krüger GmbH & Co. KG
© Krüger GmbH & Co. KG

How the sustainability program works

How the sustainability program works

Defining effective practices

Actionable, effective, and verifiable criteria and measures have been specially developed for cocoa commitment, building on the Rainforest Alliance and Fairtrade certifications. These sustainability solutions are binding for all program participants and are to be adhered to on the cocoa farms and in the cocoa cooperatives—associations of small farms or growing operations. The typically small cocoa farms of, especially, West Africa, generally band together in such cooperatives to provide mutual support, share knowledge, and improve the marketing of their cocoa.

These measures include, among other things, the selection of locally appropriate varieties of cocoa trees; the commitment to convert to agroforestry, planting native trees as shade for the cocoa trees; the ban on using certain pesticides; and pest control preferably by means of natural methods. Because conditions in the various cocoa-growing countries differ markedly, the implementation plans that are developed include priorities which take regional specifics into account.

Supporting farmers

It is cocoa commitment’s goal that the cocoa farms and cooperatives comply with the defined criteria. We enable cocoa farmers to successively introduce sustainable methods of cultivation in their operations, and support them in their implementation.

We achieve this not through inspections and checklists, but through long-term partnerships on an equal footing with farmers. Continuous information exchange, knowledge-building, training, and projects and monitoring are central components of these partnerships. The corresponding measures include demonstrations of the correct pruning of cocoa trees, the replacement of old trees—rather than the creation of new plantations—and the optimal use of mulch, fertilizers, and pesticides. Occupational-safety measures are also included in the training sessions, as workplace injuries endanger farmers’ health and life, and in turn their harvests and the economic security of their families.

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Monitoring success

Checklists are good, on-site checks are better. The farms, cooperatives, and local trading companies are therefore monitored by experts at regular intervals.

However, another important tool is data that the farms and cooperatives can collect themselves. In addition to the recording of crop data, this includes GPS data for mapping farms. The initial measuring of the site and the size of the farmland is done using polygon mapping. By comparison with satellite images, it can be determined whether this information is correct or if the farmers have illegally expanded their farming area over the years, for example by clearing land belonging to adjacent conservation areas. Another comparison is made on the basis of harvest volumes. If a farm’s crop yield is larger than statistically expected for the officially specified farming area, the reason for this is investigated.

In the event of proven violations, measures are taken to change this behavior over the long term.
An important additional benefit of these measures is that the people on-site learn how to use management and monitoring techniques, enabling them to see their own successes.

Ensuring traceability

A central element of the cocoa commitment sustainability program is the complete traceability of the raw cocoa and the raw cocoa volumes, from the farms to the KRÜGER GROUP’s own cocoa-processing factory in Germany, where cocoa powder, cocoa butter, and cocoa mass are made from the cocoa beans. The farmers record their amounts.

All farmers have their own farmer ID, which makes it possible to trace the onward journey of the cocoa from each farm. Each step along the trade and transport route is also centrally recorded digitally. Only once the processing of the cocoa beans begins do they lose their identity. As the quality and flavor of cocoa vary greatly, it is necessary to mix cocoa beans to produce consistent quality. Conventional cocoa and cocoa from the cocoa commitment sustainability program are kept apart for accounting purposes within the supply chain. Consumers can thereby be sure that the certified amount of cocoa in a piece of chocolate comes from farmers who receive a fair sum for their product and can thereby improve their living situation.

Cocoa origin

Only raw cocoa from partner farms and cooperatives is included in the cocoa commitment sustainability program. All partner farms and cooperatives are certified by either the Rainforest Alliance or Fairtrade, which means they are subject to additional regular audits. The local buyers from cocoa trading companies serving cocoa commitment also know the cooperatives on a personal level, allowing them to assess the situation on the farms directly.

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Cocoa transport

After harvesting, the farmers and cooperatives deliver the cocoa beans to the village collection points. There, the certified cocoa is recorded separately.

These collection points are used by all cooperatives in the vicinity of the respective village. The cocoa beans are collected there and transported to the harbors, where their quality is checked before they are shipped off in containers. At each step in the journey, the transported amounts are checked to ensure that they in fact correspond with the harvested amounts of cocoa commitment cocoa beans. This rules out any sudden miraculous increase in the volume of the cocoa commitment cocoa.

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Cocoa processing

The origin and quantity of cocoa commitment cocoa can be traced as far as the raw-cocoa warehouse. Here, the cocoa beans are processed, and large amounts of cocoa from various cooperatives are mixed together. This ends the traceability of the cocoa beans themselves, but the traceability of the cocoa amounts remains.

To ensure the consistently high quality of the cocoa, beans from various batches are mixed, in some cases including beans from farms that don’t participate in the cocoa commitment sustainability program. However, the allocation of the cocoa amounts remains unchanged. The actual cocoa commitment cocoa may also be used in noncertified products—but without mass balance, the cocoa commitment seal isn’t allowed to be used on their packaging. Thus, the cocoa commitment seal on the packaging serves as the guarantee that the project farms have benefited from participating in the program.

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Was ist ein
Kakao-Siegel?

Ein Kakao-Siegel ist Teil eines Nachhaltigkeitsprogramms für Kakao. Mit einem Kakao-Siegel werden Produkte auf der Verpackung kenntlich gemacht, in denen in der Regel ausschließlich zertifizierter Kakao verwendet wird.

Nachhaltigkeitsprogramme werden von verschiedenen Organisationen oder von Unternehmen der Kakao-Branche aufgelegt. Sie unterscheiden sich in den Kriterien, beispielsweise durch Anforderungen, Monitoring- und Audit-Instrumente oder Vereinbarungen zu Abnahmepreisen. Kakao-Siegel sind eine Besonderheit, da sie nur für ein einzelnes landwirtschaftliches Erzeugnis gelten. Das liegt daran, dass die Nachhaltigkeits-Herausforderungen beim Kakao anders sind als bei beispielsweise Kaffee oder Palmöl. Nachhaltigkeitssiegel, die nicht nur für Kakao gelten, haben deshalb für jedes landwirtschaftliche Erzeugnis eigene Kriterien. Beispiele für solche Programme sind Rainforest Alliance oder Fairtrade. Zudem ist es möglich, Kakao-Siegel zu kombinieren, beispielsweise cocoa commitment mit Rainforest Alliance oder Fairtrade.

Welche Siegel garantieren einen nachhaltigen Kakaoanbau?

Bei jedem Siegel für Kakao unterscheiden sich sowohl die Kriterien als auch die Umsetzungsstrategien. Man kann jedoch sagen, dass jedes Siegel für nachhaltigen Kakao-Anbau besser ist als kein Siegel. Keine Garantie für nachhaltigen Anbau liefert das EU-Bio-Siegel. Deshalb wird Bio-Kakao oft, aber nicht immer, zusätzlich nach den Kriterien eines Nachhaltigkeits-Labels produziert.

Was ist ein Nachhaltigkeitslabel?

Ein Nachhaltigkeitslabel ist ein Teil von Zertifizierungsprogrammen für Lebensmittel und Konsumgüter. Im Gegensatz zu Bio-Siegeln kommen andere, eigene Kriterien zur Anwendung, bei denen neben der Natur auch der Mensch eine wichtige Rolle spielt. Erst wenn ein Produkt ein Nachhaltigkeitslabel trägt, kann man sicher sein, dass auch soziale Standards eingehalten werden. Ebenso achten Nachhaltigkeitslabel beispielsweise bei Lebensmitteln auf nachhaltigen Anbau, was oft auf den Schutz von Regenwäldern und von Biodiversität abzielt.

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Our approach: promotion of agroforestry

Wild cocoa trees love shady forests and intact ecosystems in which every plant plays an important role: some trees create shade, while others provide valuable fertilizer with their leaves, or their roots loosen the soil. The practice of agroforestry in “multistoried” forests similar to primeval forests, with mutually complementary native plants, has many advantages for cocoa cultivation—including surprisingly high yields. This is because it isn’t only cocoa that is successfully grown in agroforests. Other tree species provide firewood, lumber, and fruit, while vegetables and herbs can be grown using smart crop sequencing. Tree and plant cuttings serve as fertilizer. Farmers can sell these non-cocoa crops for profit or use them for their own purposes.

Because the ecosystem is intact, there are also more pollinating insects, the need for artificial fertilizers and chemical pesticides is reduced, and the healthy soil doesn’t erode and can therefore store water. All of this makes the farm as a whole more resilient against climate change. We promote the transition from cocoa monoculture to agroforestry, particularly through training sessions in the cooperatives and the annual planting of around 5,000 trees. Only farms that pledge not to acquire any additional farmland through forest clearing are accepted into the cocoa commitment sustainability program. This is monitored through visits to the farms, the use of GPS data, and other means.

The challenge: a lack of financial understanding

Every small farm, even if it comprises only a few hectares, is a business. In small-farming structures, however, the operators often live from hand to mouth rather than managing the farm using modern methods. When cocoa yields drop, this isn’t attributed to the actual causes and the costs of pesticides and fertilizer aren’t offset against revenue—with the result that cocoa cultivation often is no longer worthwhile.

Our approach: promotion of agroforestry

Wild cocoa trees love shady forests and intact ecosystems in which every plant plays an important role: some trees create shade, while others provide valuable fertilizer with their leaves, or their roots loosen the soil. The practice of agroforestry in “multistoried” forests similar to primeval forests, with mutually complementary native plants, has many advantages for cocoa cultivation—including surprisingly high yields.

This is because it isn’t only cocoa that is successfully grown in agroforests. Other tree species provide firewood, lumber, and fruit, while vegetables and herbs can be grown using smart crop sequencing. Tree and plant cuttings serve as fertilizer. Farmers can sell these non-cocoa crops for profit or use them for their own purposes. Because the ecosystem is intact, there are also more pollinating insects, the need for artificial fertilizers and chemical pesticides is reduced, and the healthy soil doesn’t erode and can therefore store water. All of this makes the farm as a whole more resilient against climate change. We promote the transition from cocoa monoculture to agroforestry, particularly through training sessions in the cooperatives and the annual planting of around 5,000 trees. Only farms that pledge not to acquire any additional farmland through forest clearing are accepted into the cocoa commitment sustainability program. This is monitored through visits to the farms, the use of GPS data, and other means.

Our approach: equal rights for women in cocoa farming

We promote awareness that men and women are equal and should therefore also receive equal pay and equal access to education. A further aspect of emancipation is income opportunity: given the relevant knowledge, wives of cocoa farmers can save their own money and apply for loans collectively. This is done via Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs), groups of 15 to 30 people, mostly women, who work together and pool their savings.

With the help of knowledge, a sense of community, and loans, they can unleash their entrepreneurial potential and implement their own plans, such as starting a vegetable-growing cooperative. Additional income from such initiatives improves the social status of women and the living standard of their families. Moreover, diversification in the crops grown—in Africa, bananas, corn, cassava, papaya, or pineapple, for example—opens up additional sources of income and contributes to improved food security. And additional income enables more children to go to school and at the same time reduces exploitative child labor.

We know that women’s income and education levels have a direct impact on their children’s health and education. Therefore, promoting women’s entrepreneurial skills and creating income-generating opportunities is of central importance to them in supporting their children’s education, improving local development, and making progress toward ending exploitative child labor.

The challenge: the economic dependence of women

Women who work on cocoa farms are often financially disadvantaged, as they are hardly able to earn their own income and additionally bear the main responsibility for domestic work and child-rearing. They are therefore often financially dependent on their husbands. Frequently for women, access to education is also more difficult and opportunities fewer than for men. When women manage farms themselves, they often lack sufficient support. Women’s income and educational status have a direct influence on the health and education of their children and family members.

Our approach: information and monitoring for better child welfare

We identify and reduce those types of child labor which have been categorized as illegal by international as well as national law. The instrument used for this is the Child Labor Monitoring and Remediation System (CLMRS), which is designed to protect children and to monitor and eliminate child labor in the supply chain. In the first step, a risk analysis is undertaken in households and communities. The farmers are interviewed about how they deal with the children who work on their
farms. Individually tailored measures are then developed to remedy the situation. In the villages, child protection officers are appointed and trained to implement the CLMRS on-site. If children are being made to do illegal work, they are pulled out of these activities. This can only succeed if farmers are able to manage without the free child labor. One key to this lies in the imparting of knowledge about the efficient working and cultivation methods of the cocoa commitment sustainability program.

The children freed from illegal child labor should also be given the opportunity to go to school. This may require building schools or implementing programs for higher incomes and savings so that parents can pay for tuition. As a result, children gain the opportunity to receive a good education and to earn their own living later.

 

The problem: exploitative child labor

In the cocoa supply chain, illegal and exploitative child labor remains a widespread problem, one that can be traced back to dire poverty and a lack of knowledge. Many people don’t recognize the boundary between “helping out a bit on the farm after school” and illegal child labor.

Schoolchildren are used above all during the main harvest season as full-time workers, including for dangerous tasks such as handling pesticides, working with machetes, or climbing trees. They often work night shifts, without pay, without protective clothing or equipment, and sometimes in the slavery-like conditions of forced labor on unfamiliar, faraway farms. This prevents the children from going to school—parents often don’t have the money to pay for their schooling anyway—and leads to the disruption of their physical and mental development.

Our approach: participation in the sustainability program

Through the measures of the cocoa commitment sustainability program, participating farmers and cooperatives obtain access to knowledge that enables them to reduce costs on their farms and increase the yields and the quality of the cocoa they produce. The reward is markedly higher revenues, creating the financial capacity for a better standard of living and further investment.

The challenge: low incomes for farmers and cooperatives

Cocoa is grown on large and small farms and marketed through large associations, or cooperatives. Entire villages are dependent on cocoa farming. If farm management skills and the knowledge of modern agricultural practices are underdeveloped, profits may be at risk, as the production costs will then be too high, and yields and quality insufficient.

Our approach: reforestation of fallow land

In the framework of cocoa commitment, abandoned farmland outside of national parks and agricultural areas is reforested in order to restore the native regional flora and fauna to land outside of these conservation areas as well.

Significant deforestation has occurred in the affected regions in the past. In reforesting these areas, trees and plants are chosen that are native to the respective region’s primeval forests and are “climate smart”—that is, robust enough to adapt to climatic changes. For example, 11,000 native trees might be planted in a ten-hectare area and monitored for three years. To ensure that the new forest isn’t cleared again, the communities receive Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES), a kind of compensation tied to environmental projects, such as the establishment of plant nurseries in cooperation with women’s associations in the communities, or programs to distribute efficient cooking stoves that burn less firewood.

The challenge: fallow acreage

When a cleared forest area is depleted by monoculture cocoa farming, another section of forest is then cleared for cultivation—sometimes illegally, in nature reserves. The depleted acreage is abandoned. However, the soil isn’t fertile enough to support the regrowth of a healthy, full natural forest, but only scrubby undergrowth lacking in biodiversity.

Our approach: better knowledge about crop protection and fertilization

In the framework of projects and training courses, the cocoa farmers acquire up-to-date knowledge about how environmentally friendly crop protection works and how to optimize fertilization methods. Instead of the expensive use of large amounts of chemical pesticides, natural methods are often the better choice. This benefits ecosystems and biodiversity, and the quality of the cocoa also improves. Nitrogen-fixing plants, such as banana plants or mahogany trees, help improve the soil and protect against weeds, while at the same time providing shade. Mulch from cocoa pods, which is to be found on the farm anyway, is also an excellent soil conditioner.

The challenge: incorrect use of pesticides and fertilizers

Due to insufficient knowledge and a lack of access to ecological pest control and fertilization methods, conventional farming practices often employ large amounts of environmentally damaging and even incorrect pesticides and fertilizers. This approach is expensive and eats into profits. At the same time, it takes a heavy toll on ecosystems and on the health of the people using the pesticides. The financial burdens it imposes make it difficult for farmers to earn a living wage, often leaving illegal deforestation and further monoculture farming as the only way out—which in turn destroys important ecosystems and reduces biodiversity.

Our approach: Climate Smart Cocoa

What can be done in a dry growing region to help the soil better retain water from the rainy season, and to prevent evaporation during droughts? How can soil erosion and the spread of fungal diseases be reduced in regions that experience heavy rainfall? How and when should cocoa trees be pruned given a particularly dry or wet growing season? Which alternative varieties of cocoa plants are best suited to changing climate conditions? What technical aides may be used? How can the carbon footprint of cocoa cultivation be reduced?

Each region and cooperative requires its own Climate Smart Cocoa (CSC) strategies, which are taught through projects and in training sessions. The objectives are to improve productivity while simultaneously building resilience in the face of possible climate change scenarios, and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The challenge: insufficient adaptation to climate change and weather fluctuations

Particularly wet or dry years endanger cocoa yields and incomes. Farms and cooperatives often lack the knowledge to adapt to weather and climate phenomena over both the short and the long term. The consequences can be immediate or long-term crop failures due to periods of drought or heavy rainfall which threaten farmers’ livelihoods. Some current growing regions may lose their suitability for cocoa cultivation altogether in the coming decades.

Our approach: mapping farmland

Farmers who want to become part of cocoa commitment must guarantee that none of their farming areas are situated in a nature reserve, and must pledge not to engage in further deforestation. This is monitored using polygonal mapping. First, the cooperatives map the farmers’ cultivation areas by means of GPS data. This data is then used in a supply chain mapping tool to confirm that the farms aren’t located in protected areas and that the farmers don’t clear any forests in the future.

Does the farm border a nature reserve? If so, satellite photos show whether the farm boundary is correctly indicated, or whether the mapping has been falsified. Is the crop yield remarkably high for the area cultivated? Then satellite photos and on-site visits are used to determine whether farming is taking place in illegal areas. However, the system isn’t based on control alone: it is also about solution paths for farmers. For farms located near conservation areas, farm management plans are drawn up to prevent farming from encroaching on the forest. Cocoa commitment–certified cocoa thus comes from deforestation-free farms.

The challenge: illegal logging that is hard to detect

The clearing of forested areas for new acreage for cocoa cultivation has been common practice for decades. Although countries try to combat this by designating protected areas, violations are often almost impossible to detect.

Our approach: agroforestry and Good Agricultural Practice (GAP)

Monocultures are avoidable, as the alternatives deliver higher total yields over the long term: diversified agroforestry combined with Good Agricultural Practice (GAP). On cocoa farms, this means the use of suitable plant varieties, the proper use of shading from additional trees, the maintenance and improvement of soil fertility by natural means, environmentally friendly weed and pest control, and restorative post-harvest practices. Mixed cultivation with other crops, like bananas, papaya, or cassava, provides additional income and is complemented by sustainably grown trees for lumber.

As a result, it isn’t necessary to create new fields or fell trees in adjacent areas for lumber. The implementation of these practices is achieved through the development and transfer of knowledge in the communities and on the farms, regarding questions such as: How can the stock of cocoa trees continuously be rejuvenated? Which seedlings should be selected? How do cocoa trees have to be pruned? Which crops thrive in particular, and what additional functions do they have—for example, do they provide shade or improve the soil?

The challenge: deforestation in virgin forests and rainforests

The most profitable type of cocoa farming over the short term is a monoculture on freshly cleared primeval forest or rainforest land. This is extremely damaging to the environment: biodiversity is lost, large amounts of fertilizers and chemical pesticides have to be used, and at some point, the soil is depleted, which leads to the clearing of further forested areas. The wood logged on such lands is in high demand, as it can be used as free firewood or sold as valuable high-quality lumber. Monocultures have been the default practice for decades, and any knowledge of better alternatives is often lacking. Another disadvantage of this practice is that it makes the farm reliant on a single source of revenue. A failed harvest means a sharp drop in its income.

Our approach: teaching financial knowledge

By teaching farmers about invoicing, accounting, and the use of growing logbooks, they learn how to run their small business in a more professional manner. In this way, bad investments can be avoided and, at the same time, the positive results of converting to agroforestry can be made visible—not only in the cocoa revenues, but also in the overall income of the farm in the form of vegetable crops and wood, and in the savings achieved on pesticides. This makes visible to the farmers that their income can be significantly increased using their existing farmland.

The challenge: low yield despite overexploitation

Each small farm, even if it only manages a few hectares, is a business. However, people often live hand to mouth here, instead of running their farms with modern management methods. If cocoa revenue decreases, this is not assigned to its actual causes, and the cost of pesticides and fertilizer is not offset by income. This often results in cocoa farming no longer being financially viable.

In the projects and during the training courses, the cocoa farmers acquire up-to-date knowledge about how environmentally friendly pest control works and how to perfect fertilization methods. Instead of the expensive use of large amounts of chemical pesticides, natural methods are often the better choice. This is beneficial to ecosystems and biodiversity, and the quality of the cocoa also improves. Nitrogen-fixing plants, such as banana plants or mahogany trees, help improve the soil and protect from weeds, while at the same time providing shade. Mulch made from cocoa pods, which are in abundance on the farm anyway, is also an excellent soil improver.

amounts of chemical pesticides, natural methods are often the better choice. This is beneficial to ecosystems and biodiversity, and the quality of the cocoa also improves. Nitrogen-fixing plants, such as banana plants or mahogany trees, help improve the soil and protect from weeds, while at the same time providing shade. Mulch made from cocoa pods, which are in abundance on the farm anyway, is also an excellent soil improver.

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