Guide to sustainable cocoa

Promote Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance labels which offer solutions for more sustainable cocoa production by guaranteeing better living conditions for producers:

Support for producers: Guaranteed minimum price, community development premium, fairer working conditions and the fight against child labor.
Preserving the environment: Banning deforestation, encouraging agroforestry, reducing the use of pesticides and protecting biodiversity.
Resilience and adaptation: Promotion of sustainable agricultural practices, crop diversification and empowerment of producers in the face of climate change.

Encouraging agroforestry would limit deforestation, protect the environment, improve the lives of producers and guarantee the future of cocoa.

A win-win model!

© &COCOA

&COCOA is a Belgian artisan chocolate factory based in Péruwelz, specializing in the production of high-quality chocolate. The main aim of the chocolate factory, which adheres to ethical and sustainable principles, is to combat deforestation. With this in mind, the &COCOA project has rehabilitated an abandoned cocoa plantation by maintaining an agroforest, reintegrating the cocoa tree into its natural habitat, under the shade of tall tropical trees. Today, it's a true forest cocoa grown in Kongo, Cameroon. Some forty producer families are involved in the project, and cocoa bean prices are twice those on the traditional market.

The Chocolaterie

&COCOA is based on a "bean to bar" approach, guaranteeing complete control of the production chain. This approach ensures total traceability of cocoa, making it possible to control every stage, from bean cultivation to chocolate bar confection. The aim is to offer consumers an authentic product, rich in natural flavours, while supporting cocoa producers.

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Partner players

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Originally, &COCOA was the fruit of a partnership between Durwood, a company specializing in the marketing of certified tropical wood, and Eticwood, an engineering firm committed to tropical forest management.

The project was made possible thanks to funding from the Agence Française de Développement(AFD) and the Programme de Promotion de l'Exploitation Certifiée des Forêts(PPECF), scientific support from Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech(Université de Liège), and logistical support from the local FSC-certified logging company PALLISCO. It also benefits from the support of the International Tropical Timber Technical Association(ATIBT) and the Cameroon Ministry of Agriculture Program(PCP-ACEFA).

Product range

today, &COCOA offers a wide range of quality chocolate products. From chocolate spreads to hot chocolate lollipops, the company also offers chocolate bars with 44%, 58%, 70% and 85% cocoa content. To find out more, visit their website.

&COCOA and Nature + ASBL

Nature +, a Belgian ASBL committed to the sustainable management of tropical forest resources, collaborates with Ecocoa. The ASBL also has its cocoa beans processed there, from agroforestry cocoa farms located on the outskirts of the Odzala-Kokoua National Park in the north of the Republic of Congo. The aim of this project is to produce 100% deforestation-free chocolate, while helping to improve the socio-economic conditions of communities living on the outskirts of the national park. Thanks to this initiative, Nature + offers 70% cocoa dark chocolate bars.

iconeInfo More about Nature +

Galler logo Chocolaterie Galler, a Belgian company founded in 1976, brings together 170 chocolate enthusiasts. It is committed to producing quality chocolates while adopting a responsible and sustainable approach. Since April 2021, the company has adopted a collaborative model, eliminating traditional hierarchical levels in favor of collective decision-making.

Partner Players

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In 2020, Galler affirmed its commitment to sustainability by launching the People, Planet and Cocoa. This project is financially supported by the King Baudouin Foundation and benefits from the scientific backing of the Tropical Forestry Laboratory(Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, Université de Liège). It is based on a partnership with Fairtrade Belgium, the Ivorian cooperative Yeyasso, No Nonsense Marketing and theUniversité Nangui Abrogoua (Côte d'Ivoire).

Galler's commitments

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As part of these partnerships, Galler is actively investing inagroforestry in Côte d'Ivoire. With its partner cooperative Yeyasso (" Village of Hope " in the local language), over 60,000 trees have already been planted in cocoa fields. These trees not only help to preserve the environment, but also diversify producers' sources of income through the production of fruit,timber andother valuable products (condiments, pharmacopoeia, honey, caterpillars, charcoal, etc.).

Crop diversification is also taking place, notably with rice and manioc to strengthen the economic resilience of producers. Galler's chocolate is Fairtrade certified, guaranteeing cocoa producers fair and equitable living conditions.

A program to monitor carbon stocks

Following on from this first initiative, Galler is pursuing its commitment to organic, fair-trade and carbon-neutral cocoa. In 2024, a permanent carbon sequestration monitoring system was set up on the plantations. Such an approach, still rare in cocoa farming, represents an innovative step forward. It has provided an accurate representation of the carbon stocks contained in the region's fields.

Once again this year, two students visited Yeyasso to further their agroforestry research. One will complete the assessment of carbon stocks in trees and soil, while the other will analyze biodiversity by identifying the animal species and insects present in the crops. In this way, the project regularly enables several ULiège students to gain valuable field experience while contributing to advances in the cocoa industry.

Thanks to these collaborations and its commitment to quality and ethics, Chocolaterie Galler aims to offer a diversified range of products while making a positive contribution to society and the environment. Proud of its Liège roots, the chocolate factory has maintained its production facility in Vaux-sous-Chèvremont for over 45 years, contributing to the local economic dynamism.

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iconeInfo To find out more

The parasites presented in the brochure are myridis and moniliosis.

Patrick Jagoret, Olivier Deheuvels, Philippe Bastide. Sustainable cocoa production: drawing inspiration from agroforestry. Perspective, 2014, N° 27, 4 p. 0.18167/agritrop/00003. hal-01538117
Carimentrand A. (2020) Etat des lieux sur la déforestation importée et les schémas de certification de l'objectif zéro-déforestation dans la filière cacao. Study report. Comité Scientifique et Technique Forêt/ CIRAD, February 2021, 64p Paris France.
Tropenbos International, Tropenbos Ghana and Nitidae. 2023. Cocoa agroforestry in West Africa. Private sector experiences and opportunities for collaborative action Tropenbos International, Ede, Netherlands; Tropenbos Ghana, Kumasi, Ghana and Nitidae, Lyon, France. (Original title in English: Cocoa agroforestry in West Africa. Experiences from the private sector and opportunities for collaborative action)