Committing the Netherlands which accounts for approximately 20-25% of cocoa traded globally to enable cocoa farming families to earn a Living Income, end cocoa related deforestation and forest degradation and contribute to ending all forms of child labour.
The Dutch Initiative on Sustainable Cocoa was officially launched at the first General Assembly for signatories, on Tuesday 29 September. DISCO is centered around a joint vision for a sustainable cocoa sector, developed in a multi-stakeholder process, which initiated in 2019. The DISCO builds on the success of the Letter of Intent “Sustainable cocoa consumption and cocoa production” signed into action on to achieve 100% guaranteed sustainable cocoa consumption by 2025 for The Netherlands.
Ms. Sigrid Kaag, Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation shared her vision on a sustainable cocoa sector in a scoping meeting of DISCO in July 2020, ‘Towards building synergy and efficiency in driving sustainability in the global cocoa sector.’ Watch the webinar here.
Key topics for the General Assembly were the alignment and cooperation between European cocoa platforms in Belgium, Germany and Switzerland, and the European Union, a joint communication plan and the governance structure. A Steering Committee will be established, as well as working groups, that will develop roadmaps and key performance indicators.
DISCO is a sector agreement between cocoa trading & processing companies, chocolate manufacturers, retail, government, civil society organizations, service providers, and knowledge institutes. More information and an overview of all the signatories of the Dutch Initiative on Sustainable Cocoa can be found at our website.
