Progress in Traceability Means Progress For All

More and more companies and professional baking associations put their best foot forward to ensure traceability for the vulnerable raw materials the industry relies on: cocoa, palm oil, vanilla, eggs. Their initiatives are starting to show impact – and this impact improves the lives of everyone on the supply chain, from farmers, to bakers, to customers. 

Traceability in the baking industry refers to the ability to track and document the journey of ingredients and finished products through every stage of the supply chain. This includes the sourcing of raw materials, processing, production, distribution, and final sale to the consumer. Traceability systems ensure that each step in the process is recorded and can be traced back to its origin, providing transparency and accountability throughout the entire production cycle. 

The raw ingredients that have traditionally been the focus of traceability initiatives are the ones that generally require long supply chains as they are produced in remote countries compared to where the ingredients are processed and sold in bakery products: vanilla, cocoa, palm oil. Recently, eggs have been added to the list, as it became apparent that their quality depends also on the well-being of the poultry. For each product, different measures have been put into place in the past 10 years, from child labour prevention to satellite-powered surveillance systems to prevent deforestation. 

The latest annual report of the Cacao-Trace sustainable cocoa program from Belcolade and Puratos follows how the initiative is on track to achieve its ambition by 2030 of reaching up to 50,000 farmers and helping all of them achieve a living income. Cacao-Trace made its most significant contribution to-date to cocoa growing communities, reaching over 23,000 farmers and their families, across eight countries, in 2023. Puratos and Belcolade launched the Cacao-Trace program in 2013.

In 2023, the Cacao-Trace program collected a EUR2.4m Chocolate Bonus, which will be shared with farming communities in 2024 – either as cash donations or via community projects. The Chocolate Bonus, which corresponds to a EUR0.10 bonus for every kg of high-quality chocolate sold to Cacao-Trace customers, directly benefits the growers of Cacao-Trace high-standard cocoa beans. Over the past year, the Chocolate Bonus continued to strengthen community projects in Côte d’Ivoire, Papua New Guinea and Uganda, and for the first time in 2023, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Aimed at supporting local cocoa farming communities through improved income, better education and healthcare facilities, the Cacao-Trace program provided 46 essential pieces of water equipment and contributed to the construction and renovation of twelve primary school projects across these regions. 

In addition, the report has revealed never-seen-before figures for the Cacao-Trace Quality Premium: the financial reward cocoa farmers receive for the high-quality beans they produce, regardless of how much chocolate is sold. In 2023, EUR1.5m Quality Premium was paid, aimed at increasing farmers’ income and improving their living conditions in the long term. The Quality Premium ensures that every farmer receives the money they deserve, based on the quality of beans delivered.

“The Chocolate Bonus is one of the cornerstones of our Cacao-Trace program, so being able to increase the amount collected every year has had an enormous impact on the communities where we operate,” said Youri Dumont, director of the chocolate business unit at Puratos. “We’re dedicated to ensuring a long-term positive effect, a proportion of the Chocolate Bonus is allocated to the maintenance of projects, to help future generations benefit from investments in education and health infrastructures as well. Thanks to the increase in Chocolate Bonus last year, along with other crucial Cacao-Trace initiatives, we’re absolutely on track to reach our 2030 goals.” 

The report also highlights the progress being made to improve agroforestry in key cocoa-growing regions. In 2023, 199,302 trees were planted, taking the total to 626,322 towards the program’s target of 3.44 million trees by 2030. Replanting trees is a key element of the program’s strategy, to help safeguard cocoa cultivation and restore biodiversity. 

Recent initiatives build on the good practice established by these already established programs and aim to take traceability standards even further.

Fedima’s Code of Conduct for Responsible Sourcing

Fedima, the Federation of European Manufacturers and Suppliers of Ingredients to the Bakery, Confectionery and Patisserie Industries, published in June its Code of Conduct for Responsible Sourcing in the bakery ingredients industry, renewing its commitment to creating a favorable policy environment, while ensuring a sustainable and innovative baked goods sector.

Fedima’s industry-wide Code of Conduct for Responsible Sourcing is aimed at Fedima members and all suppliers of the bakery and patisserie industry in Europe, providing them with common responsible sourcing standards and guiding them in their implementation.

”The European bakery ingredients industry that Fedima represents is operating halfway along the supply chain, between ‘farm’ and ‘fork’, uniquely placed at the crossroads between production and consumption of baked products,” said Jean-Philippe Michaux, Chair of Fedima’s Sustainability Committee. “Responsible sourcing is a growing challenge to all operators of the bakery value chain and our members are eager to play their part in supplying ingredients that are responsibly sourced to the European bakery sector and its consumers”.

The Code’s standards include compliance with existing laws and regulations, as well as the quality and safety of products and raw materials, ethical business practices, and respect for human rights. A healthy and safe work environment, the minimisation of environmental impact, attention to animal welfare, supply chain transparency, and continuous improvement are also identified as key principles to abide by.

Representing 13 member associations across Europe, Fedima aims to support and grow the baked goods sector by sharing its positions and priorities at EU level, contributing to policy discussions of relevance for the sector.

Read the rest of the article in the North America Overview Supplement.

You might also like

Newsletter

Subscribe to our FREE NEWSLETTER and stay updated SUBSCRIBE