Special project supports Tanzanian cocoa farmers

UNDER a special project of the Cocoa Horizons Foundation, Tanzanian cocoa farmers received 130,000 cocoa seedlings, and six new classrooms were donated to local farming communities. The initiative, which aims to improve livelihoods and communities, is funded by Belgian finest chocolates maker Kim’s Chocolates and implemented by the Barry Callebaut Group, leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products.

Together Kim’s Chocolates and the Cocoa Horizons Foundation will support farmers and their communities by increasing the productivity of their cocoa farms and by providing access to education. In Tanzania, Barry Callebaut’s direct sourcing and farm services organization, Biolands, works directly with farmers, ensuring close relationships to effectively implement sustainability programs.  

The new cocoa seedlings will replace aging trees, and every year more than 100,000 seedlings will be distributed to the farmers.

The project partners have established a training program to share technical knowledge and good agricultural practices through a “train the trainer” approach. In the next three years, 45 best practice demonstration plots will be set up to support the training of 4,500 cocoa farmers in Tanzania. The cocoa farmers will also be given tools such as pruning shears and saws to implement their newly acquired knowledge.

A school is inaugurated in Tanzania (Photo: Barry Callebaut)

Primary education
Kim’s Chocolates program “Cocoa for Schools” focuses on the cocoa growing districts of Tanzania. The six new classrooms are located in Lubele and Lubaga, near Kyela, and are benefitting 966 children. The 100 villages around Lake Nyasa account for more than 55,000 pupils.