ADM Cocoa, one of the world’s largest processors and suppliers of cocoa products, presented its S.E.R.A.P. TM (Socially and Environmentally Responsible Agricultural Practices) program at this year’s International Cocoa Organization’s (ICCO) World Cocoa Conference (WCC) in Amsterdam (9 June – 13 June). The conference attracted more than 1500 visitors from dozens of countries around the world.
Following the success of the first WCC in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire in November 2012, the second edition of the event again provided a forum for the global cocoa industry to come together and exchange sustainability strategies and discuss opportunities and challenges.
ADM Cocoa's S.E.R.A.P. program works closely with multiple stakeholders along the cocoa value chain, contributing to improving the net living income of cocoa farmers and transforming their communities by focusing on four key areas: social responsibility, environmental stewardship, quality management and productivity and producer group professionalism.
“ICCO’s WCC is an excellent discussion platform for the global cocoa industry with representatives from both producing and consumer countries,” said Michiel Hendriksz, Director of Sustainability. "Although the sector's sustainability efforts have significantly advanced, other challenges have emerged over the past years; progress has been made, but we still have much to do.”
Hendriksz further added, “Our S.E.R.A.P. program is unique in that it goes beyond established cooperatives and reaches out to independent, not yet organized small holder farmers, which represent the large majority of the global cocoa farming population. Our effort to support women in cocoa is one example of the program’s ability to enact positive, lasting change and create a true transformation.”
ADM Cocoa’s S.E.R.A.P. program has reached more than 60,000 cocoa farming families throughout West Africa and Indonesia. The program is part of the CocoaAction initiative and has so far conveyed more than $27 million in funding to cocoa producer organizations.
About ADM
For more than a century, the people of Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE: ADM) have transformed crops into products that serve vital needs. Today, 31,000 ADM employees around the globe convert oilseeds, corn, wheat and cocoa into products for food, animal feed, industrial and energy uses. With more than 270 processing plants, 470 crop procurement facilities, and the world’s premier crop transportation network, ADM helps connect the harvest to the home in more than 140 countries. For more information about ADM and its products, visit www.adm.com.
Source: Archer Daniels Midland Company