Close to two centuries ago, Charles Barry travelled to Africa to seek the highest quality cacao beans he could find. Later, he became the very first chocolate connoisseur. The Cacao Barry brand has become a symbol of excellence and innovation around the world, sourcing and creating some of the finest sources of chocolate from various countries. Not only do they create these delicious morsels of sweetness, but they truly do good in this world too.
We love that one of the key priorities for Cacao Barry is sustainability – they put a lot of work into guaranteeing the livelihoods of farmers and the availability of cocoa!
One of the many ways they support cocoa farmers is through the Cocoa Horizons Foundation.
Cocoa farmers around the world face incredible challenges to make ends meet and to live healthy, productive lives. There are many reasons for this, including:
- Limited knowledge and understanding of good agricultural practices
- Aging farms and depleted soil
- Unpredictable effects of climate change
- Gender imbalance – women have limited opportunities to build skills and generate income
- Limited basic infrastructure and services (schools, literacy, access to safe water, healthcare)
- Child labour and unsound labour laws
…just to name a few.
The Cocoa Horizons Foundation is a non-profit organization supervised by the Swiss Federal Foundation Supervisory Authority that works on the ground with these farmers to better understand these challenges, their needs and how to address the complex issues in each community.
The foundation’s activities aim to promote rural self-reliance, working with farmers on sustainable agricultural systems and focusing on community development & capacity building so that farmers can support themselves in the long-term.
In order for cocoa farmers to build their businesses, there needs to be demand for their product. So, in turn, Cacao Barry helps brands create innovative and irresistible products that keep consumers coming back for more.
To link cocoa farmers to chefs, Cacao Barry created the CacaoCollective. This community is built by chefs, for chefs, to allow them to collaborate and share resources & ideas and to truly know the chocolate they are working with. Chefs and farmers are connected to evoke inspiration and to increase farmers’ engagement and recognition.
These experiences also ensure transparency of cultivation methods, good agricultural practices and implementation of innovative processes.
We’re thrilled to partner with Cacao Barry again as they embody many of the values Terroir represents! This April, Ruva Chinyemba, Sustainability Brand Development Manager, will join us to talk more about how the brand supports cocoa plantations and communities.
To learn more about the Cocoa Horizons Foundation and their activities, visit their website here.