The sweet taste of success
Our Chocolate Lovers will know just how delicious the Whittaker’s 70% Samoa Smooth Dark Chocolate block is – and it’s not just the taste that’s great. This product, made with 100% traceable Samoan cocoa beans, has played a crucial role in Whittaker’s reconnecting with our family in the Pacific and helping revitalise the Samoan cocoa industry.
2024 marked 10 years since Whittaker’s started working with cocoa farmers in Samoa to make a real, positive difference following a decline in the nation’s once-flourishing cocoa industry. The decade-long Whittaker’s Cocoa Improvement Programme has been very successful in revitalising the cocoa business in Samoa and significantly improving the livelihoods of local growing communities. As the programme draws to an end, we wanted to share some of the great milestones we have achieved along the way.
While the programme has wrapped, Whittaker’s is committed to providing ongoing support to farmers in Samoa by continuing to source their cocoa beans to make our 70% Samoa Smooth Dark Chocolate block.
The Whittaker’s Cocoa Improvement Programme began in 2014 when Matt Whittaker, a fourth-generation chocolate maker, met Tuipai Saleimoa Va'ai (Sale) of Savai’i Koko, a fourth-generation cocoa producer. Matt knew the Trinitario cocoa beans Sale’s family grew would make the most delicious chocolate. But as Matt spent more time in Western Savai’i, he realised there was more Whittaker’s could do in addition to sourcing Samoan cocoa. There was also an opportunity to help reinvigorate the Va'ai family business and in turn, the wider Samoan cocoa industry.
“I’m so grateful to Whittaker’s for helping bring our family’s cocoa legacy back to life,” says Sale.
“Cocoa farming in Samoa faces significant challenges, with factors including catastrophic weather events, lack of export infrastructure and an aging workforce. The programme has had a huge impact including providing a steady income to local families and helping improve Samoa’s economy through global export.”
Watch a video about the Samoa Cocoa Export Improvement Programme below.
Cocoa Improvement Programme Big Wins:
In 2014, average cocoa yields at the participating farms in Samoa were at 150kg, but as a result of the programme, are now sitting at 460kg per hectare of dried cocoa beans. At the same time, the average income from one hectare of cocoa has increased more than 5 times since 2014.
2015 marked the first export of a full container of cocoa beans in over a decade.
In 2017, the programme expanded to include a partnership with New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT). This enabled us to involve more growers and the wider community.
Between 2017 and 2019, the programme achieved significant gains in seedling production. We also worked to educate 400 cocoa farmers on improved planting, growing and post-harvesting practices, and quality control. Exports tripled from the programme’s inception, achieving a consistent export of 35 tonnes per year and as a result, farmers in Western Savai’i saw real improvements to their incomes.
Between 2020 to 2024, we worked to address the skills gap among younger farmers and a general shortage of young people in the agriculture sector in Samoa. This saw us work with our partners to design and implement two 12-week horticulture and entrepreneurship courses. We are thrilled to share that 36 students completed the course, over half of which were young women.
In this four-year window, the programme established an export compliance and traceability system, which meant cocoa beans could be traced back to the growers. This allows for any quality issues to be quickly resolved and for Whittaker’s to have 100% traceability of the Samoan cocoa beans we use, ensuring the sourcing process is ethical and has minimal impact on the environment.
We also helped address the limited visibility of the Samoan cocoa industry in New Zealand and globally, with the first ever Pacific Cacao and Chocolate event held in Auckland in 2022.
Programmes like this are part of our commitment to making Good Honest Chocolate that has a positive impact on communities around the world. For more Good Honest updates on the work we are doing to support our farmers, become a Whittaker’s Chocolate Lover here.