Buying certified cocoa only from third party organizations such as UTZ Certified is now an essential part of doing business for all chocolate companies, not just the big ones, says Scandinavian confectioner Cloetta.
Fair Trade USA and UTZ Certified are piloting a collaborative cocoa certification scheme that they say will reduce costs for farmers looking to get dual certification.
UTZ Certified has begun a three-year initiative to develop a certified sustainable hazelnut supply in Turkey, which accounts for 70% of global production.
Mars chocolate bars in the Netherlands are to carry UTZ certified marks from Feburary 2012 as Mars sets targets for its cocoa to be fully sustainable worldwide by 2020.
Another milestone has been achieved in the UTZ certified sustainable cocoa programme, with the first-ever shipment of cocoa beans from Ghana that meets that standard’s economic, environmental and social criteria.
Producers in the world’s largest cocoa-producing country, Côte d’Ivoire, are taking part in the first independent audits in preparation for the UTZ Certified code of conduct; a programme that sets internationally recognised standards for responsible cocoa...