World Cocoa Foundation Inc

COCOAACTION BRASIL IS A PIONEERING MODEL FOR COCOA SUSTAINABILITY THAT HELPS PRIVATE SECTOR COMPANIES WORK TOGETHER ACROSS THE SUPPLY CHAIN, SPEAK WITH A UNIFIED VOICE WITH NATIONAL AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, AND LEARN TOGETHER THROUGH A CONSOLIDATED MONITORING AND EVALUATION SYSTEM. LEADING MEMBERS OF BRAZIL'S CHOCOLATE AND COCOA SECTOR LAUNCHED "COCOAACTION BRASIL" TO ADDRESS A RANGE OF SUSTAINABILITY ISSUES IN THE COUNTRY'S COCOA SECTOR, IN OCTOBER 2018. COCOAACTION BRASIL WORKS TO FIND SOLUTIONS THAT INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY, IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF BRAZIL'S COCOA, INCLUDING CONTROLLING PESTS AND DISEASES, IMPROVE FARMERS' LIVING AND WORKING CONDITIONS, STRENGTHEN FARMERS ORGANIZATIONS, AND SUPPORT SUSTAINABLE FOREST-POSITIVE COCOA PRODUCTION SYSTEMS.ALL ACTIVITIES ARE IMPLEMENTED BY ENGAGING MEMBERS AND PARTNERS THROUGHOUT THE SUPPLY CHAIN. COCOAACTION BRASIL HAS AN ESTIMATED DURATION OF FIVE YEARS, FROM 2018 TO 2022.

DEFORESTATION IS A MAJOR ISSUE IN CTE D'IVOIRE AND GHANA, WHICH TOGETHER PRODUCE NEARLY TWO-THIRDS OF THE WORLD'S SUPPLY OF COCOA. CTE D'IVOIRE AND GHANA RESPECTIVELY LOST 25% AND 8% OF THEIR PRIMARY FOREST BETWEEN 2002-2019, WITH A SIGNIFICANT PORTION OF DEFORESTATION DUE TO COCOA FARMING. AT THE NOVEMBER 2017 UN CLIMATE CHANGE CONFERENCE (COP23), THE GOVERNMENTS OF CTE D'IVOIRE AND GHANA AND LEADING CHOCOLATE AND COCOA COMPANIES SIGNED THE COCOA & FORESTS INITIATIVE FRAMEWORKS FOR ACTION. IN MARCH 2019, ANOTHER MILESTONE WAS REACHED TO STRENGTHEN TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY IN THE COCOA SUPPLY CHAIN: THE SIGNATORIES RELEASED ACTION PLANS THAT SPELL OUT CONCRETE STEPS TO END COCOA-RELATED DEFORESTATION. THE ACTION PLANS FOCUS ON: FOREST PROTECTION AND RESTORATION, SUSTAINABLE COCOA PRODUCTION AND FARMERS' LIVELIHOODS, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSION. IN 2020, THE COCOA & FORESTS INITIATIVE REPORTED ON THE FIRST TWO YEARS OF IMPLEMENTATION.