The Cocoa Snapshot
Mid-year 2023-2024

2023

Driving positive change in cocoa farming
What is Cocoa Horizons?
Cocoa is typically produced by smallholder farmers inremote equatorial areas. The supply chain faces
considerable challenges such as farmers with limited
resources to invest on their land, high child labor
prevalence, human rights abuses, aging trees,
depleted soils, climate change effects, lack of basic
community infrastructure such as schools, access tosafe water or paved roads.

Executive Summary:In the first half of the year, amidst a very challenging
year for cocoa communities due to a poor harvest,
Cocoa Horizons has been working side by side withfarmers and made significant strides in key areas offocus:
87% full data collection on farmers, a key step
towards full traceability, and compliance with theupcoming EUDR (European Union
Deforestation
2023Regulation) legislation.
24% increase in Farm Business Plan adoption,demonstrating farmer commitment to investingin productivity.
256% increase in membership of VSLAs (Village
Savings and Loans Associations). Women accountfor 75% of total VSLA members.
A programmatic pivot to a community-basedchild labor remediation approach focused on
identifying root causes and strengthening local
child protection systems.

In 2015, Barry Callebaut established the Cocoa
Horizons Foundation with the vision to drive cocoa
farmer prosperity by creating self-sustaining
communities which protect nature and children.
The program is implemented across 7 countries byBarry Callebaut entities. In Côte d’Ivoire, we alsocollaborate with Touton, Sucden and ETG to expand
our activities.
Impact and transparency are at the core of ouractivities; that’s why through our annual audited
report, we share how the funds are spent to achieve
tangible results for farming communities.

To access the all our reports, follow this link:
https://www.cocoahorizons.org/reports

This momentum fuels our drive to accelerate impact
and create lasting change for cocoa communities forthe rest of the year and beyond.

By partnering with Cocoa Horizons, you support
the UN Sustainable Development Goals:
https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment
Disclaimer related to the use of UN SDGs: The content of this publication has not been approved by the United
Nations and does not reflect the views of the United Nations or its officials or Member States.

Cocoa Horizons - Mid-year snapshot 2023/2024

Key Highlights: Global
We recruited new farmer groups to offset impact of lower yields.

337 +1%

farmer groups(+22% vs mid-year 2023)

farmers deliveringcocoa vs mid-year2023

A decline in cocoa purchased reflects general market trend. .

198k

247k
162k 152k
75k
2018

85k
2019

2020

2021

2022

-10%
tons of cocoapurchased vs prioryear.

112k

2023

350k

163k 175k
72k
2018

2024
Mid year

179k

89k

2019

111k

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024
mid year# of tons of cocoa purchased# of farmers delivering cocoa

TRACEABILITYPROSPERING FARMERSEMPOWERED COMMUNITIESTHRIVING NATURE

87%

94,24098%

CHF 325kof farmers deliveringwith full dataof cocoa farmers who received
a Farm Business Planof farmer groups in our direct supply
chain covered by child labor monitoring
and/or remediation activities

Payment for Ecosystem services
to farmers

Cocoa Horizons - Mid-year snapshot 2023/2024

The farmers we support
To understand the farmers we work with and their challenges, we collect information throughcensus. This data empowers us to tailor our activities to address the complex issues affecting cocoa
communities. This proactive approach has given us a strong foundation to adapt to upcoming EUregulations.

KEY DATA AND FACTS
58%

Côte d'Ivoire

29%

Ghana

16%

are women

87%

of farmers deliveringwith full data

Ecuador

1.5%

Brazil

1.5%

49
average age in CDI

2023

100000
1200
00

2.5%

8000
0

Nigeria6000
0

vs prior year

2.5%

Majority of farmers
in Côte d’Ivoire
and Ghana

4000
0+1%

Indonesia

2000
0farmers delivering cocoa

5%0197,651

Cameroon

8.2average size ofhousehold in CDI

It means we know the identity of thefarmers, their family, their sources ofincome and the location and size of theircocoa plots.

Cocoa Horizons - Mid-year snapshot 2023/2024

Prospering farmers
This unprecedented year of highprices and low yields has created bothchallenges and opportunities forfarmers. Cocoa Horizons continues its
work to enhance farmer livelihoods
and the sustainability of cocoa
farming.

Less training, more doing.
Our shift from a traditional training
approach to a more action-oriented
strategy continues to show
encouraging results in the first half ofthe year.
Farm Business Plans (FBPs): The
24% increase in FBP adoption
demonstrates their value.. This
demand reflects their success in
helping farmers optimize yields
and income through tailored
recommendations and input
packages.
Pre-Harvest Support: Farmers
are becoming more open to our
pre-harvest labor support modelas they see its potential to address
the challenge of labor shortages
and to increase yields. Our
experience has demonstrated that
deploying these activities justbefore the rainy season ensures
the best return to the farmer.

Productivity Packages: Farmers
increasingly recognize the valueof productivity packages inboosting yields and income,particularly with the rightapplication of fertilizers andinsecticides. To maximize impact,
we are timing distribution tocoincide with the rainy season
expected to start in May, hence
the 36% decrease vs prior year.
Income Generating Activities:
IGAs have demonstrated positive
results in providing income
diversification for farmers,
particularly during off-peakseasons. While successful, there issignificant potential to expand
these programs, reaching evenmore farmers and fostering
greater economic resilience
within cocoa communities.

I’ve been a coach for the past three years.
Since last year, I work as the head of thelabor team. I came to this position
because I had a great track record as acoach.
A lot of farmers initially resist when weshow up to prune their farms. Many
don’t stay to witness the work because it
saddens them to see us chopping of thebranches and leaves of their precious
trees but once they see the results, they
become super happy and always requestthat we come back.

Looking Ahead
Our focus for the rest of the year will
be on scaling pre-harvest support,
ramping up IGAs, and distributing
the majority of productivity packages
and seedlings. Farmer data will guide
this expansion, enabling us to tailor
services effectively for the evolving
needs of cocoa communities.

Kouamé Koffi Sylvain,
Head of a labor team,Bousoukro, Côte d’Ivoire

Cocoa Horizons - Mid-year snapshot 2023/2024

Prospering farmers
94,240197,651vs prior year

farmers who received a Farm
Business Planfarmers delivering cocoa+1%+24%vs prior year

3,241-36%

farmers receiving a
Productivity Package

vs prior year

4,618
cocoa seedlings distributed in Ecuador
with other countries scheduled forsecond half of the year.

Cocoa Horizons - Mid-year snapshot 2023/2024

Empowered Communities
Building Resilient Communities
Driving Economic Growth with VSLAs
There is a growing enthusiasm for Village
Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs)
with adoption spreading to more
operating countries. With a 256%
increase in membership vs last year,
VSLAs are becoming a powerful force for:
Economic Empowerment: Members
are taking loans to support incomegenerating activities (IGAs),
strengthening household economicstability.
Community Development: VSLA
success motivates community-led
projects, such as contributing to theconstruction of schools.
Women's Independence: 75% of
VSLA members are women which
has been key in fostering financial
independence and transforming
household dynamics for the better.
While VSLAs demonstrate positive
impact, ensuring their long-termsustainability requires continued
capacity building, particularly when
project-driven support ends.
Building initial trust and engagement
within communities takes time,demonstrating the need for long-term
commitment.

Addressing Child Labor at the Root
Our shift to a community-based childlabor prevention and remediation
strategy focuses on addressing root
causes. Extensive research has
highlighted the limitations of traditional
individual-focused monitoring systems
in creating sustainable change.
This new approach is supported by ourdue diligence process and aligns withthe growing urgency to implement
scalable, rights-based solutions. It
encompasses:
Identifying Root Causes: We focus
on understanding and tackling theunderlying factors contributing tochild labor, such as poverty and lackof access to education.
Strengthening Systems: We arecollaborating with governments andlocal partners to bolster national childprotection systems and ensure
effective government services reachvulnerable communities.
Continued Monitoring: Farmobservation surveys remain essential
for identifying potential child laborcases, ensuring continued vigilance
within our cocoa supply chains.
We are committed to creating a future
where child labor has no place in ourcocoa supply chain.

The Community Development Committee
was founded 3 years ago. There are 12members. The first project we started
with was the water pump. No one wasmanaging it and it was not working.
Now, when there is a problem, we sit
together as the committee and we try tofind solutions. The pump is now fixedand someone has been designated tomaintain it.

Yao Kouamé Norbert,
Community Development Committee member,
Golikro, Côte d’Ivoire

Cocoa Horizons - Mid-year snapshot 2023/2024

Empowered Communities
98% +40%vs prior yearof farmer groups in our direct supply
chain covered by child labormonitoring and remediation activities

6,419-35%
child labor cases

vs prior year39,670 +39%

vs prior year

child labor cases
under remediation

child labor cases
remediated+235%

vs prior year

VSLAs established or functioning

identified

13,823 +541%

587

14,457 +256%

vs prior year

VSLA members

vs prior year

75% +30%

vs prior yearof VSLA members are womenCocoa Horizons - Mid-year snapshot 2023/2024

Thriving Nature
Halfway through the year, Cocoa
Horizons continues to progress
towards a deforestation-free cocoa
supply chain.
We are expanding traceability andagroforestry, raising farmer awarenesson environmental protection, andpartnering strategically to maximize
our impact.
Traceability:
We have made significant progress intraceability, achieving 87% coverage infull data collection across member
farmers. This puts us in a strong
position to meet upcoming EU
Deforestation Free regulation (EUDR)
requirements by 2025.

Farmer training on environmental
Protection
Alongside expanding agroforestry, we
are investing in farmer knowledge toensure the long-term success of thesesystems. To date, about 24 000 farmers
have been trained in sustainable
farming practices and environmental
protection. These training programs
focus on enhancing biodiversity andmaximizing carbon sequestration.
Partnerships such as in regions like
Ivory Coast with the Ministry of Waterand Forest (MINEF), have been pivotal
in aligning our initiatives with national
and international environmental
objectives.

Agroforestry:

Looking ahead

We are also leveraging our detailed
understanding of farmers to tailor
agroforestry initiatives.Integrating
farmer preferences into the selectionand management of agroforestry
systems has also significantlyenhanced adoption.

We will scale our agroforestry efforts.
Seedling distribution will peak in thesecond half of the year to optimize
survival rates.
Additionally, we will further strengthen
deforestation-free due diligenceprocesses, helping our partners meet
EUDR standards and ensuring our path
towards a sustainable and compliant
future is both impactful and effective.

The forest creates a lot of jobs, and thefarmers have been engaged andinterested in the Agbo 2 Forest
protection project. It is even a matter ofpride in the community.

Basile Houters,
Forest Restoration Manager,
EticwoodCocoa Horizons - Mid-year snapshot 2023/2024

Thriving Nature
87%

+27%

of farmers delivering cocoa with farm
size and location data.

CHF 325k

Payment for Ecosystem
Services to farmers

3,000

shade tree seedlings
distributed to farmers inEcuador. Other countries
scheduled for second halfof year.

23,975farmers trained on environmental
protection this year so far.

Our Forest Positive Approach and EUDR
Next to our efforts on traceability and agroforestry, and in partnership with Barry Callebaut, we are taking
significant steps to meet our forest-positive objectives and comply with EUDR due diligence requirements.
Barry Callebaut employs a comprehensive risk assessment approach, evaluating risks at country, regional, supplier,and farm levels. Additionally, supply chain tools to assess and mitigate risks of non-compliance are currently being
embedded into the various sourcing steps of Cocoa Horizons products.
This robust due diligence approach, coupled with investment in forest protection in landscapes where cocoa is athigh risk of being associated with non-compliance for EUDR ensures that Barry Callebaut will demonstrate no or
negligible risk of non-compliance for Cocoa Horizons products from high-risk countries entering the EU market.Page 30

Cocoa Horizons - Mid-year snapshot 2023/2024

How to tell your sustainability story?
By being a Cocoa Horizons partner you have access to a rich communication toolkit accessible on the Cocoa Horizons website
via login. The toolkit contains videos, pictures, logos, claims, posters etc. With these tools, we want to help you engage yourcustomers on sustainability, show how you are committed to drive impact and increase the demand for sustainable cocoa..

Our communication toolkit: to drive awareness and differentiate your brand online, offline and on packVideosImagery
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