Strengthening resilience across cocoa-growing communities

Across Ivory Coast, cocoa-growing communities are strengthening their resilience through income diversification, local savings groups and initiatives that support young people and families.

Ferrero supports initiatives that help cocoa communities to diversify crops, pool resources and create a better future for children.

Great chocolate starts long before cocoa reaches a factory. It starts with supporting the communities we work with, helping strengthen the knowledge, skills and opportunities that contribute to more resilient cocoa-growing families. “You must send your child to school, even if you didn’t go to school yourself. We know the importance of education. At school, we learn everything … even how to farm,” says Lago Ruth Annick, who is a farmer and schoolteacher in a small community in Côte d’Ivoire.

Around 45% of the world’s cocoa is grown in this country of nearly 32 million people. Here, many families depend heavily on cocoa, but farming this crop alone often does not provide a reliable income throughout the year. Harvest cycles vary, with cocoa typically producing one main crop and a smaller mid-crop. Today, climate change and pressure on natural resources are reshaping life in cocoa-growing communities, affecting not just individual farms, but the long-term stability of the entire cocoa supply chain.

For Ferrero, responsible cocoa sourcing includes supporting initiatives that address the needs of farmers, families and cocoa-growing communities. The future of the world’s cocoa supply depends on productive, resilient farming communities. Stronger communities mean stronger households and better prospects for their children. Ferrero works closely with more than 200 cooperatives representing over 200,000 farmers across the country. “Cooperatives play an essential role in the cocoa supply chain in West Africa,” says Olivier Zwolsman, who manages procurement and responsible sourcing of cocoa at Ferrero.

By working with the cooperatives, Ferrero can reliably trace its cocoa supplies, identify risks to crops, farms, and livelihoods, and provide locally led support for families and communities. Cooperatives help farmers to bring their crop to market for a good price, but they also share agroforestry knowledge: how to prune old or unproductive branches to improve tree health; how pest control can boost yields; and how a combination of shade trees and other plants protects the soil, supports biodiversity and makes farms more resilient to heat and irregular rainfall. The long-term resilience of the cocoa sector is closely connected to the wellbeing of farming communities. This requires approaches that consider farming practices alongside household resilience, education and opportunities for young people.

Better cocoa harvests matter, but community resilience also means not having to depend on a single crop, a single season or a single source of income. Ferrero supports crop-diversification initiatives through local partners and farmer-focused programmes, “We are now growing crops like chili, eggplant, okra and cassava,” says Émilie, a farmer and member of the Association des Femmes de Dio-Djékro. This means a more reliable income, which means more opportunities for children – most importantly education. Here, Ferrero is partnering with organizations like Save the Children, which focuses on supporting the development and wellbeing of children and young people, and helps reduce the risk of child labor in cocoa farming. Supporting young people is especially important because they represent the future of cocoa-growing communities and the sector itself.

Communities also pool some of the additional income in local Village Savings and Loan Associations. This gives farmers the ability to save, borrow and invest. A small loan can pay for seeds or new farming equipment; savings allow to plan ahead and invest in new activities that create additional income streams; accumulated savings will help cover school costs or can soften the impact of a poor harvest or crop failure.

Individually, these initiatives may seem small. Together, they tell a much bigger story. Farmer training. Pruning groups. Cooperative networks. Savings associations. Youth development programs. Community partnerships. Each plays a role in helping families build stronger livelihoods and create opportunities that can last for generations to come.