ADM Cocoa to present details of its cocoa farmer program at World Cocoa Conference

Sustainability efforts have reached more than 60,000 farmers in West Africa and Indonesia.

ADM Cocoa, one of the world’s largest processors and suppliers of cocoa products, will detail its S.E.R.A.P. (Socially and Environmentally Responsible Agricultural Practices) program at the upcoming World Cocoa Conference (WCC) in Amsterdam, which will be held next week June 9 -13.

Building on the success of the first WCC in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire in 2012, the second edition once again provides a forum for the global cocoa economy to come together and exchange sustainability strategies and discuss opportunities and challenges.

In addition to highlighting the company’s commitment to S.E.R.A.P. at its booth (35), ADM Cocoa will also participate at the conference session entitled “Global Cocoa Agenda: The Industry’s Progress, Challenges and Opportunities” on Wednesday, June 11.

“The WCC is a good balanced platform of representatives from both producing and consumer countries,” says Michiel Hendriksz, ADM Cocoa’s director of sustainability.“Although cocoa sustainability efforts have significantly advanced over the past few years and learnings have been impressive, we still have many challenges ahead.

“At ADM Cocoa, we take our social and environmental responsibilities seriously and are committed to supporting cocoa growing communities,” he adds. “Our S.E.R.A.P program is unique in that it goes beyond established cooperatives and also reaches out to independent, non-organized farmers, which represent the large majority of farming population.”

Since its inception, ADM Cocoa’s S.E.R.A.P program has reached more than 60,000 cocoa farming families throughout West Africa and Indonesia. It is part of the Cocoa Action initiative and has so far distributed more than $27million in funding to cocoa grower cooperatives and individual farmers.

S.E.R.A.P. works closely with different stakeholders along the cocoa value-chain, contributing to improving the livelihoods of cocoa farmers and their communities, the company adds. To do so, it focuses on four key areas: social responsibility; environmental stewardship; quality management and productivity; and producer group professionalism.

With more than 30 years experience in B-to-B reporting, writing and editing — the bulk of which was dedicated to covering the bakery, confectionery and snack industries — Pacyniak has chronicled changes within the food industry since the early 1980s. A Boston University journalism degree graduate, he worked for a variety of publications before joining BNP Media in 1994 as editor of Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery magazine. In 2001, he took over as editor-in-chief of Candy Industry until 2018.