Transformation, together

Cargill works closely with farmer organizations as well as peers, customers, NGOs, governments and smallholders, connecting our individual strengths in delivering systemic change and a thriving cocoa sector for generations to come.

The context

The journey towards sector-wide sustainability is far greater than the actions or interests of any one company. We all have a role to play. Cargill is breaking down barriers by working with peers, customers, local and international NGOs and smallholders and their families alike, to achieve goals that are in all of our interests.

Farmers and farmer organizations are our key partners in ensuring a sustainable supply of cocoa well into the future. Our success is linked to theirs. In order to create a more sustainable cocoa supply chain globally, we work with a multitude of stakeholders across the industry, using individual strengths and abilities for lasting and transformational change.

Our target

We use the power of partnerships to achieve our targets for our other cocoa sustainability goals and to accelerate sector transformation in a way that we cannot achieve by ourselves.

How are we achieving our goal?

We work closely and transparently with all relevant stakeholders forging local supply chain and sector-wide partnerships to make sure that the programs we deploy make a concrete difference on the ground.

Our foundation is the work that we do with our partner farmer organizations participating in the Cargill Cocoa Promise to build their capacity as professional and financially viable organizations. By supporting them, we create entities that drive future and local progress. Today, we continue to work and take localized action in specific regions and complement with the technical expertise from partners and initiatives to move the sector forward as a whole.

Establishing close partnerships with relevant local and global organizations has allowed us to achieve meaningful impact in the communities where we do business, thanks to a wide range of insights that informs our sustainability programs.

Our partnerships

CARE

Our relationship with CARE is a testament to a shared commitment to helping smallholder farmers achieve more prosperous and resilient lives that dates back to 2008.

International Cocoa Initiative

Our engagement with the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) includes the implementation and scaling of the Child Labor Monitoring and Remediation System (CMLRS).

Cocoa & Forests Initiative

In 2017, we co-signed the Cocoa and Forests Initiative (CFI), aimed at tackling deforestation, alongside thirty-four other chocolate and cocoa companies, the World Cocoa Foundation, and the IDH Sustainable Trade Initiative.

World Resources Institute (WRI)

In collaboration with the World Resources Institute, we have conducted a baseline risk assessment of over 2.3 million hectares across our five origin countries.

International Finance Corporation (IFC)

We partnered with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to provide partner cooperatives with commercial loans for truck leases and other logistical equipment in the Doni Doni Project.

SCOPEInsight

We have been working with SCOPEInsight to closely assess the outcomes of our Coop Academy for the farmer organizations and leaders who have participated in it.

USAID

In 2020, we joined the Alliance for eTrade Development between USAID and 11 leading private sector partners. Our joint aim is to further advance digital trade for small and mid-size enterprises in cocoa.

We have more than 63 partnerships with numerous types of organizations including NGOs, foundations, producing country governments, financial institutions and more. This includes new partners such as: Lady Agri, The Starbucks Foundation, Grab, Education and Health for All Foundation (EHAF), Agromap, FOA S.A.R.L., Global Water Challenge and The Roadmap to Deforestation-Free Cocoa in Cameroon.