I have mentioned before that the Westernization of the tastes of the Indian middle classes is part of the great hope of the chocolate industry. Much of the sustainability talk that is making the rounds these days is driven by the desire to produce enough cocoa at reasonable prices to capture that market. But a recent report makes me wonder how much there will be to capture.
Rubber for Cocoa?
According to a report in Agence France Press, an increasing number of farmers in the Côte d’Ivoire are abandoning cocoa farming in favor or growing rubber trees. If that trend is indeed as widespread as the article claims–hundreds of hectares every year–then this important news.
Established Cocoa Markets also Fall
I mentioned earlier that the emerging chocolate markets didn’t quite live up to their predicted potential. But the traditioal markets aren’t doing so well either. The German Candy Manufacturers Association (Bundesverband der Deutschen Süßwarenindustrie) released first quarter grindings numbers that showed a 17.2 percent decline to 87,576 tons compared to the first quarter of the previous year.
Mars Commits to Sustainability … Sort Of
I’ve taken a little time with this post to process some older information I had. But here it is:
Mars has committed to sourcing sustainable cocoa. According the company’s press release, Mars is “aiming to certify its entire cocoa supply as being produced in a sustainable manner, by 2020.” The firm plans to partner with the Rainforest Alliance (RA) which will provide the certification services. Well, at least for some of the cocoa. Here’s the press release again: “By 2020, the goal of the collaboration is to achieve Rainforest Alliance certification of 100,000 metric tonnes of cocoa annually for use in Mars products, a significant portion of Mars total cocoa requirements.” No word what significant means. Finally, the press release mentions that Mars will continue to work with UTZ Certified to achieve certification for cocoa produced in West Africa.
Emerging Markets Seem A Bit Reluctant
India and China are to the chocolate industry what emerging markets were to the financial speculators of the late 1990s. A promise of untold riches to any company that got its feet into the door. The new middle classes, so the theory went, are eager to adopt western tastes and, with it, chocolate. The dream of 100 million Indians eating Mars or Nestlé was a powerful lure.
