In 2009, Mars made a bold pledge
to buy only certified sustainable
cocoa by 2020 because we believe
that certification is an important tool
that can ultimately benefit millions
of cocoa farmers.
Certification is the best tool industry has to support
effective extension services to reach as many farmers
as possible around the world and provide them with
the material support and organization that will enable
them to be successful. In order for certification to be
effective, however, industry should commit to certifying
an even larger proportion of the world’s cocoa, and
we should work together to strengthen certification’s
impact to deliver real and lasting benefits to farmers.
Mars is proud to have been the first company to commit
to 100% certified sustainable cocoa, and even though
we are only 3 years into our journey, we have made
significant progress.
– In 2011, we doubled our certified cocoa purchases
to roughly 10% of our total cocoa volume, or
approximately 30,000 metric tons.
– We’ve set another ambitious milestone for 2012 to
re-double our certified cocoa purchases to 20%,
and we anticipate we will exceed this target with
nearly 90,000 tons of certified cocoa purchased
in 2012. This will make us the largest user of certified
cocoa in the world.
– What does purchasing 90,000 tons of certified
sustainable cocoa mean? It means buying cocoa—
equivalent of the weight of 160 Airbus A380s—that
we know has been grown and harvested in line with
important environmental and labor standards by
farmers who have been provided additional training
to help them achieve greater yield and income from
their farms.
– Mars is the only major global chocolate manufacturer
to work with the three main certification organizations —
Rainforest Alliance, UTZ Certified, and Fairtrade
International. In 2011, Mars’s cocoa purchases were
certified according to Rainforest Alliance’s and UTZ
Certified’s standards. Purchases of Fairtrade cocoa
began in 2012.
Currently six Mars products worldwide are labeled.
Since our primary goal is to reach 100% certification
and encourage more industry commitments, Mars will
purchase certified cocoa for all products by 2020 even
though some products may not be explicitly labeled.
We believe that securing cocoa’s future against rising
demand and greater economic and environmental
pressures begins with enabling smallholder far mers to
increase their yields and, by extension, their incomes.
Putting these farmers first is our guiding principle. For
more information on our Sustainable Cocoa Initiative,
visit www.mars.com/cocoasustainability or read our
blog at www.cocoasustainability.com.
For more information, please visit www.mars.com/cocoasustainability or www.cocoasustainability.com.
Illustrations by Nigel Peake