How to calculate the cocoa bean equivalent of my UTZ
certified purchases
June, 2016
All companies that want to buy and sell UTZ cocoa products need, as a first step, to register as a member of the
UTZ Cocoa Program. The applicable membership fee is based on the yearly annual cocoa purchase volume in cocoa
bean equivalent (see point 4 of Join UTZ for cocoa companies). This document explains how to calculate how much
your purchases of cocoa liquor, cocoa butter, cocoa powder, chocolate or compound equals in cocoa beans in order
for you to choose the correct membership type for your registration with UTZ.
Buying pure cocoa products
Cocoa beans
conversion rate 82%
Pure cocoa derivatives
There is a fixed conversion rate of 82% for cocoa beans to cocoa liquor. The conversion rate has been
fixed according to industry standards and is applicable to all traceability levels. For the Mass Balance
traceability level and also for general volume calculation purposes, this conversion rate applies to all
pure cocoa derivatives (cocoa liquor, cocoa butter, cocoa powder).
Example:
You are buying 100 MT of cocoa powder.
Calculation: Divide the 100 MT of cocoa powder by 82 (conversion rate) and multiply by 100. This gives
you the cocoa bean equivalent of your cocoa powder
(100 MT/82) x 100 = 121,95 MT
Buying chocolate/compound
1.
Calculate the cocoa content of the product you are purchasing
Example:
You are buying 100 MT of milk chocolate with a cocoa content of 30% 1
Calculation: 100 x 0,3 = 30
The cocoa content of the milk chocolate is 30 MT.
2.
Divide the cocoa content of your product by 82 (conversion rate) and multiply by 100. This gives
you the cocoa bean equivalent of your chocolate/compound.
(30 MT/82) x 100 = 36,59 MT
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Please note that cocoa content refers to all the cocoa ingredients in the product (e.g. cocoa liquor, cocoa
butter, cocoa powder, cocoa nibs….)
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