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Home » Commodities » Cocoa

Cocoa

Photo credit: Nice & Serious

The Rainforest Alliance is strengthening its pioneering cocoa certification program, which is the world’s largest scale initiative to drive more sustainable cocoa farming. Key priorities of the cocoa strategy are assurance, shared responsibility, supply chain transparency, and profitability and resilience.

With the support of the cocoa industry, the Rainforest Alliance is taking this unprecedented action to facilitate greater accountability and oversight in the cocoa sector. The organization’s goal is to improve the economic, social, and environmental conditions of the cocoa industry – beginning with the millions of smallholder farmers in the first mile of cocoa production.

Quick Links


Moving the Strengthened Cocoa Assurance Plan to Phase 3

Phase 3 of our Cocoa Assurance Plan invites new groups from West Africa to become certified, provides an updated policy for farm and supply chain certification, and further addresses farm encroachment in protected areas and deforestation.

Your Questions, Answered: Measures to Strengthen the Cocoa Sector 2020

This Q&A has been developed to provide guidance to certificate holders and certification bodies with regards to the Measures to Strengthen the Cocoa Sector.

Policy for Farm and Supply Chain Certification in Cocoa

This policy sets out specific implementation requirements for certificate holders at both producer and supply chain actor levels (Certification Criteria) and for reinforcing the assurance process (Assurance Process Rules).

Audit Allocation System: Implementation in Ivory Coast and Ghana

Information about a new approach we will implement in Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana beginning in June 2020 to strengthen assurance of our certification system.

Must Reads


Organizational Updates

Cocoa: Origin Matching Mass Balance Timelines

Farmer poverty is an enduring issue in the cocoa sector. Our 2020 Sustainable Agriculture Standard addresses this critical issue from many angles, including the introduction of Origin Matching Mass Balance in cocoa.... Continue Reading
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A farmer holding Rainforest Alliance certified cocoa pods in Ghana
Help Center

Understanding the Sustainability Differential in Cocoa

Our 2020 Certification Program includes two financial requirements for the buyers of Rainforest Alliance Certified commodities: the Sustainability Differential (SD) and Sustainability Investments (SI). For cocoa, we will require a minimum SD of $70 per MT as of July 2022.... Continue Reading
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Help Center

Full Mutual Recognition

An explanation of the Rainforest Alliance full mutual recognition to ensure traceability.... Continue Reading
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All resources for Cocoa


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Organizational Updates

The Africa Cocoa Fund: Call for Applications and Q&A

The Rainforest Alliance’s Africa Cocoa Fund (ACF) is a three-year, $5 million fund to support cocoa farmers and help preserve the local landscapes in West and Central Africa.

Published on December 8, 2022

Organizational Updates

Cocoa: Origin Matching Mass Balance Timelines

Farmer poverty is an enduring issue in the cocoa sector. Our 2020 Sustainable Agriculture Standard addresses this critical issue from many angles, including the introduction of Origin Matching Mass Balance in cocoa.

Published on November 22, 2022

Project Profile

Project Profile: Creating Resilient Ecosystems and Transforming Rural Cocoa Economies in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana

Through this project, we will bring together cocoa-producing families, governments, and the private sector to improve livelihoods for cocoa farmers, increase tree cover, and help reduce national and corporate GHG emissions. 

Published on November 15, 2022

Help Center

Q&A: Measures to Strengthen the Cocoa Sector

This Q&A has been developed to provide guidance to certificate holders and certification bodies with regards to the Measures to Strengthen the Cocoa Sector.

Published on October 26, 2022

Organizational Updates

Understanding End-to-End Cocoa Traceability and the MultiTrace Platform

The Rainforest Alliance is transitioning all cocoa traceability to our new digital platform MultiTrace.

Published on October 18, 2022

Organizational Updates

Conversion Rates to Indicate Volumes in the New Rainforest Alliance Certification Program

Supply Chain Certificate Holders can use the default conversion rates of some Rainforest Alliance Certified crops in the tables below to indicate their volumes.

Published on October 7, 2022

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