Fairly traded organic cocoa from Dominican smallholders – YACAO and FUNDOPO
Since 1999, our subsidiary YACAO has been supplying us with fairly traded organic cocoa beans from the Dominican Republic. The beans originate almost exclusively from the FUNDOPO smallholder organisation, with PRONATEC and YACAO being involved in the foundation of this organisation over 20 years ago. In this interview, the two managing directors Kilian Moser (YACAO) and Wilder Nahui (FUNDOPO) explain what their cooperation looks like and what they are currently working on.
Direct procurement from smallholders has been in our DNA for many years. YACAO incorporates over 3000 smallholders from the Fundación Dominicana de Productores Orgánicos (FUNDOPO) into our value creation chain.
Organic Fairtrade cocoa – why were YACAO and FUNDOPO founded?
Kilian: PRONATEC founded YACAO as a local subsidiary in order to have a presence directly on site. Currently, around 80 employees and about 70 seasonal workers undertake daily tasks relating to the purchase, control, fermentation, drying and shipping of the cocoa beans.
Wilder: The creation of an independent smallholders’ organisation was required in order to retain Fairtrade certification in the first place. PRONATEC provided invaluable support with the foundation of FUNDOPO and supported what were at the time 84 smallholder families with organic and Fairtrade certification. Today, we have over 3000 members.
How do YACAO and FUNDOPO work together?
Kilian: YACAO checks the quality of the beans, secures funding for the purchasing, ferments, dries and ships the cocoa. Everything related with the cocoa farming and the use of Fairtrade Premiums is under the responsibility of FUNDOPO. The collaboration is strong. As a cooperative of smallholders, however, FUNDOPO acts independently and according to democratic principles.
Wilder: For me, it is an example of perfect symbiosis. I have been involved in this for 15 years already – in 2007, I was still with YACAO, which at the time numbered only around 700 smallholders, and then, since 2020, I have been with FUNDOPO. I can see what a major advantage this is for both sides. The senior management of FUNDOPO considers the goal of its daily work to be providing the best possible support to its members and their families. Their health, their well-being are the top priorities.
What will be your focus for 2023?
Wilder: FUNDOPO would like to have an even stronger presence in the regions, in order to support the cocoa farmers on site. We would like to acquire more land for our producers, through applications to the government, for example. By means of financial incentives, we motivate the farmers to invest in the care of their cocoa gardens, to achieve higher yields. We plan to use a common herd of cattle, which can then graze alternately on the existing plots, and encourage the farmers to grow other commercially viable crops, such as avocado or zapote, so that the farmers can establish several sources of income.
Kilian: 2022 was the best year in our history with regard to cocoa. Nature was good to us. Furthermore, many smallholders placed their trust in FUNDOPO and YACAO and delivered their cocoa to us. However, the amount of cocoa also showed us the limits of YACAO. We must work on this, so that we can process larger harvest sizes without problem, and prepare them for export.
Organic cocoa: what are its advantages and challenges in your opinion?
Wilder: We have an internal control system, as part of which our trained technicians regularly visit our members. This control system is, in turn, inspected and certified by the organic inspection body. So for instance, we know that no pesticides are being used by us. For farmers, “organic” primarily means protecting their own health. And of course, thanks to the organic premiums, they earn more than with conventional cocoa, and are less reliant on world market prices.
Kilian: Organic is very well suited to cocoa farming in the agroforestry system. The cacao fruit is already peeled on the field; the shell, together with the leaves, produces a valuable humus, meaning that the field does not need to be fertilised or sprayed. My wish would be for the entire cocoa farming industry to switch to organic. As regards pesticide checks, we go way beyond the organic standards and inspect every single container – when checking only one in ten would be sufficient.
Growing cocoa in agroforestry: Do you promote this?
Wilder: Our cocoa farmers have been cultivating their cocoa gardens exclusively in agroforestry since the very beginning. With us, farmers can purchase cacao seeds with specific properties at cost price. We also plan for the provision of tree saplings, which provide shade and/or bear fruit. “Poco a poco” [little by little] – this is a very slow process, but we remain committed to it.
Are the farmers open to new ideas?
Wilder: Many are initially sceptical. However, we acknowledge their concerns, and this helps. In 2023, we would like to extend our technical support. New farming methods are to be taught in model gardens. When the farmers see that the measures work and the quality and amount of cocoa improves, this means more than a thousand words. We also consciously address the younger generation and train our members on environmental topics such as waste and wastewater management, integrated pest management or biodiversity protection.
How do you ensure traceability?
Kilian: Our Traceability System, introduced in 2019, is based on barcodes and can assign the bean batches processed, to the cocoa producers. We can therefore track and check the producer, amount and payments at all times. YACAO buys 100% of the cocoa produced by FUNDOPO. We take care of this task together.
Which Fairtrade projects have you implemented recently?
Wilder: We have built eight aqueducts, which provide running water to many families. Part of the premiums went towards the construction of roads, a chapel as well as six private homes and some renovation works for members living beyond the poverty line. We covered the costs for materials and craftsmen, while the respective member helped with the work. In addition, we have funded doctor’s visits as well as medication for 250 members with little means or no health insurance.
What do you see as the challenges for 2023?
Kilian: Additional, temporary control measures introduced by the EU led in the second half of 2022 to many pesticide inspections, in order to protect the integrity and high quality of local organic cocoa. This has been very challenging for us. However, thanks to good results, the measures were lifted again.
We now have to focus on implementing the new EU Organic Regulation for group certification*. Up until now, this had only been applied to non-EU countries. Since the beginning of 2021, these regulations also apply within the EU. The purpose of these measures is to protect customers in Europe and the EU organic label. For us, however, they mean a considerable increase in workload and expenses, for example because of the requirement to ensure the smallholders (our partners) do not have too much land or achieve a too-high turnover, and therefore can no longer be part of the group. The additional effort and cost is not always reasonable, in my mind.
Wilder: At FUNDOPO, we have learnt from the past that the burden of responsibility and decision-making should be shouldered equally by several people. Our goal for 2023 is to increase transparency towards our members. A true right to have a say in matters, granted to all, and the new board, which we have had since 2022, build trust and make us more credible.
Many thanks Kilian and Wilder for talking to us!