The EU Deforestation-Free Supply Chains Regulation prohibits EU companies from importing or exporting cocoa produced on deforested land from the end of 2024. "What impact does the law have on cocoa supply chains and what measures are we taking on the part of PRONATEC? How can you as a customer be sure that your products comply with the new requirements?" We have presented the most important points to you - from the geo-referencing of the cultivation areas to the proof of compliance with the national legislation - and provided insight into the most important milestones of the PRONATEC project plan.

Speakers: Christoph Eisenbeiss (Certifications Expert) and Nicolas Merky (Sustainability Expert)

Recording: Deforestation-free supply chains – an overview and the milestones for PRONATEC - (Audio quality unfortunately is very poor, so the recording will not be uploaded).

Here you can find the PowerPoint presentation - Deforestation Free Supply Chains

PREMIUM SPICES has taken us on a journey to the small-scale spice, vanilla and cocoa farmers in Madagascar. On a virtual tour through the country, we took a look at the different production sites and the production steps that take place there. "What exactly does the harvest look like and what processing steps are necessary on site to produce a high-quality raw material?" Thanks to our proximity to the producers, you were able to  experience the origin.

Speakers: Yvonne Vasquez (Head Vanilla & Spices) and Marco Steiner (Head of Sales) 

Recording: A tour of Madagascar

Our Plant Manager Yannick Rihs looked back on the first year of our cocoa processing and talked about the highlights and challenges, current trends and plans for the future. In the second part we took a closer look at our cocoa powders: in a live tasting session, we compared the taste, appearance and uses of two low-fat powders (10-12% fat content) – one natural and one alkalised – and examined the production processes behind them. "What are alkalised powders suitable for and when is it worth considering natural or non-alkalised powders as an alternative?"

Speaker: Yannick Rihs (Plant Manager)

Recording: 1 year of PRONATEC Swiss Cocoa Production, including cocoa powder tasting

OUR PAST WEBINARS

This year, we had the pleasure of having some of our partners from the countries of origin of our products with us in Nuremberg. Jürg Brand, Hervé Gaudiche and Yasmine Khapery from PREMIUM SPICES visited from Madagascar, while Wilder Nahui from the smallholders’ organisation FUNDOPO (Fundación Dominicana De Productores Orgánicos) and Roman Hipper from YACAO have joined us from the Dominican Republic.

Did you miss the live presentations? Here you can find the recordings:

Live recording Jürg Brand PREMIUM SPICES: Personal insight into the life of Madagascar's vanilla and spice smallholders

(First few minutes in German, then in English)

Live recording Roman Hipper YACAO and Wilder Nahui FUNDOPO: Opportunities and challenges of cocoa farming in the Dominican Republic

(First part YACAO in English, second part FUNDOPO in Spanish)

From the powder mill to the butter press
At our brand-new plant in Beringen near Schaffhausen, we process certified organic and fair trade cocoa beans into premium-quality, “Made in Switzerland” cocoa mass, butter and powder. What distinguishes PRONATEC Swiss Cocoa Production? What kind of machinery does a cocoa bean pass through before it leaves our plant as a premium-quality semi-finished cocoa product? And how do we ensure that we don't mix up strict certification requirements or special single-origin cocoa mass during the production processes? Towards the end of the webinar, you will have the opportunity to put your own questions about our cocoa processing operation.

Speakers: Sandro Marti and Simon Yersin

Recording webinar PRONATEC INSiGHT "From the powder mill to the butter press" 

The task of manually pollinating vanilla orchids in the early hours of the morning is hard work indeed. But what happens after the harvest is no less fascinating. Together, we will trace the journey of a green organic vanilla pod – from being dipped in a hot water bath to sweating and then drying in the sun and the shade, while being gently massaged. Everyone who takes part in the webinar will be sent a genuine organic Bourbon vanilla pod by post, on which we will then carry out sensory testing together.

Speaker: Marco Steiner

Recording webinar PRONATEC INSiGHT "The finer details of vanilla processing"

Does fair trade really make a difference to smallholders? Our certification experts are convinced that it does – and they will show you the form in which the additional price that our customers pay actually reaches the country of origin. We will shed some light on the subject of full physical traceability and explain why, in some cases, the mass balance system does make sense – and even benefits the smallholders. Please also use this webinar as an opportunity to ask any questions you may have about fair trade.

Speakers: Christoph Eisenbeiss and Nicolas Merky

Recording webinar PRONATEC INSiGHT "What difference does fair trade make to smallholders?"

Join us to hear our sugar expert Nicolo Rieben explaining the fascinating process of producing sugar. What does it take to extract sugar from sugar cane, how are specialities such as whole cane sugar or demerara sugar made and which are the main regions where our organic sugar cane is grown? What does polarisation mean, how does cane sugar get its golden-brown colour and what role do the molasses content and crystal size play in making different kinds of sugar?

Recording webinar PRONATEC INSiGHT "From sugar cane to a versatile comodity"

How can we ensure the end-to-end traceability that is so important, especially for organic and Fairtrade-certified products? What kind of difficulties do we face in documenting the entire supply chain, from the small farmer through all the processing stages to the end product? And what role do digital resources have to play in this? Find out more in this webinar with our traceability experts Nicolas Merky and Roman Hipper.

Recording webinar PRONATEC INSiGHT "Know your farmers: how does end-to-end traceability work?"

Fancy something spicy? Take on the role of a PRONATEC spices expert and join us in tasting different ginger products from our source countries. Be a part of our experienced PRONATEC sensory evaluation panel and test our product samples for quality criteria such as aroma, flavour and appearance. You will be sent a tasting kit in advance, containing a number of product samples and precise instructions. Warning: things might get spicy!

Recording webinar PRONATEC INSiGHT "Taste ginger like a pro"