Source : Procurement Leaders
Confectionary giant Mars has announced that it is on track to meet its pledge made in 2009 to purchase all its cocoa supplies from certified sustainable sources by 2020.
In making its announcement Mars said that it had met its 2011 goal of purchasing 10% of its cocoa from sustainable sources and that it will beat its 2012 target of 20%, meaning it will buy some 90,000 tonnes of certified cocoa.
"We are pleased to have reached another critical milestone in our Sustainable Cocoa Initiative," said Barry Parkin, global procurement and sustainability head for Mars Chocolate.
"A successful certification program is so important to our effort because it is the most effective tool we currently have to reach millions of cocoa farmers at scale. It took a lot of hard work from farmers, certifiers, and others along the supply chain to meet this milestone, and we are pleased to see their energy paying off," he added.
Mars estimate that demand for cocoa will outstrip global supply by one million tonnes by 2020 and its Sustainable Cocoa Initiative looks to increase productivity, strengthen communities and encourage better farmer incomes.