Sustainability

Luker Chocolate on course to impact 1,500 farmers by 2027

13-May-2024 - Last updated on 11-May-2024 at 13:35 GMT

Luker cocoa farmer Eugenia Jiménez, inspects this season's crop. Pic: Luker Chocolate

Luker Chocolate, the premium Colombian Business-for-Business (B4B) chocolate manufacturer, has revealed significant progress towards Its 2027 sustainability targets, including increasing income for farmers, social wellbeing, and deforestation-free cocoa.

The B Corp-certified company’s 2022-2023 Sustainability Report reveals it helped 1,125 farming families boost their income by 12% or more and is making real progress towards its goal of impacting 1,500 farmers by 2027.

Luker purchases cocoa from 13,000 producers, which accounts for over 20% of the total in Colombia. Its commitment to high-price transfer is at the heart of its sustainable and equitable cocoa value chain.

Outlined in its sustainability report, Luker Chocolate claimed it paid 94% of the New York Stock Exchange Free on Board (FOB) price to cocoa suppliers in 2022-2023.

Purchase guarantee

To provide context, this approach sees Luker pay Colombian farmers almost double the price of African cocoa. Additionally, Luker offers a purchase guarantee to its producers, ensuring a market for their cocoa at any price level throughout the year.

The company said it has also made significant advancements in verifying this price transfer to the producer, achieving 100% traceability of cocoa at the association and supplier levels. By 2027, the company’s goal is to achieve 100% price traceability of all cocoa used for export at the farmer level.

Julia Ocampo, Luker Chocolate’s VP of Cacao Sourcing and Sustainability, said: “At Luker, we don’t just aim to positively impact cocoa producers; we involve their families and wider communities too. We are utterly convinced that the transformation towards sustainable well-being is done by involving communities in their own development through education, entrepreneurship, and environmental awareness.”

Colombian chocolate ecosystem

Founded in 1906, Luker set out to transform the Colombian chocolate ecosystem to bring benefits to all. Today, this aim is carried forward through the principle of ‘Creating Shared Value’ (CSV).

To further increase and diversify farmer incomes, Luker’s ‘The Chocolate Dream’ initiative helps farmers to improve their productivity, diversify their business, and support wider communities by, for example, upskilling entrepreneurial skills.

Beyond farmer income, the company said this year’s report demonstrates how Luker strengthens social wellbeing in Colombia’s cocoa-producing regions. This is delivered through collaborative projects on education and entrepreneurship via ‘The Chocolate Dream’ — with a particular focus on motivating young people and women to explore a career in the chocolate industry.

Luker’s CEO Camilo Romero said: "Our past serves as the foundation for building an ever-more sustainable future. While we celebrate our achievements, we remain committed to continuous improvement, striving to do better for our communities, our planet, and future generations."