Certification
Certification for cocoa farming is a transparent, credible, and ongoing process that reports on labor conditions in the West African cocoa farming sector – on a country-by-country basis.
Cocoa certification represents a major step forward in efforts to improve the well-being of children, farm families and communities in the cocoa sector. It is the first program ever to address labor issues involving a farm-based commodity grown on several million small family-owned and -operated farms in some of the world’s most remote regions.
Certification for cocoa farming includes:
- Data collection at the community and farm level that provides a statistically representative view of child labor and forced adult labor problems
- Transparent, publicly available annual reporting on the findings from the data collection, and on what must be done to address the issues raised in the report
- Remediation – a range of programs to improve the well-being of children and address the issues identified in the data collection process
- Independent verification of the certification process
These elements work together to drive continuous improvement in the well-being of children, families and cocoa farming communities.
The diagram explains the development of a certification system for smallholder agricultural production in West Africa is being undertaken by our industry together with the governments of the cocoa producing countries.
