Cargill, the global food giant, joined the sustainability bandwagon in 2008 when the corporation joined the UTZ Certified Program for cocoa. In 2009, the first cooperatives in the Côte d’Ivoire had implemented the relevant codes of conduct and were certified by UTZ.
Now, a year later, the first premium payments totaling $400,000 were made to two cooperatives–Co-operative Agricole de Fiedifoue and Coopaga.
Where is Cocoa Processed?
I’ve written earlier about a new cocoa processing plant being opened in Ghana. Processing refers to roasting, winnowing, cracking and grinding the cocoa beans. It also can include pressing the cocoa to extract cocoa butter and produce cocoa powder.
To the left is a breakdown of the top ten cocoa processing countries for the last cocoa year. Despite the preponderance of industrial countries at the top, there is a solid presence of cocoa producers among the top ten countries.
Cargill Opens New Cocoa Processing Plant in Ghana
Several news sources reported the opening of a new cocoa processing plant in Tema, Ghana. The Cargill plant will process about 65,000 tons of cocoa beans annually to produce chocolate liquor, cocoa powder and cocoa butter.
Ghana’s president Kufuor presided over the inauguration giving an indication of the significance the plant holds in the eyes of Ghanaian authorities. At the moment, Ghana processes 298,000 tons (about 40 percent of its cocoa bean production) domestically and exports the processed materials. The new plant will increase that amount substantially.
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