Taking our cocoa to the cloud

Last updated 21/11/2023: Over the years, the premium quality and ethically sourced cocoa we use to make Whittaker’s chocolate has been on a remarkable journey.

From the farms in Ghana where our cocoa is grown, to our factory in Porirua, Wellington where it is turned into delicious Whittaker’s chocolate. And from there, into the mouths of Chocolate Lovers across Aotearoa and the world. One place our cocoa hasn't been, is the cloud. At this point, you’re probably wondering what we're talking about!

As part of achieving 100% traceability and greater transparency of all the cocoa beans we use from Ghana, Whittaker’s has supported our farming cooperatives to migrate from paper-based tracking systems, typically used in the industry, to a centralised database in the cloud. For Whittaker’s this means, in addition to the geo-mapping we use to make our cocoa 100% traceable, we can collect far more data to ensure fair, ethical and sustainable sourcing. Our digital systems allow us to build a better picture of the farms where our cocoa is grown, the farmers who grow it, and their communities, all in real time! As a result, we can better protect the people and places where our cocoa is grown, ensure the authenticity and Rainforest Alliance certification of our beans, measure progress, and quickly identify any potential problems.

Digitising cocoa farm management

Since 2022, Whittaker’s has been funding the use of a digital information management system called Farmforce.

Using Farmforce, the farming cooperatives Whittaker’s works with in Ghana can register each farmer who supplies our cocoa beans, together with GPS-mapped polygons of their individual fields. Each farmer is then assigned a unique ID number for traceability purposes. Farmforce also allows family members to be linked to our farmers, including their children. So, what are the benefits of using Farmforce?

• Traceability: Whittaker’s has achieved 100% traceability of each and every cocoa bean we source from Ghana. Farmforce further strengthens our ability to trace our cocoa right down to the GPS coordinates of the farm where it was grown. Through Farmforce, each bag of cocoa beans we source is linked to a specific farmer’s field, identified by a unique barcode that can be traced throughout the supply chain. This level of traceability helps ensure the authenticity of the origin of our cocoa and that it meets our ethical standards.

• Child protection: Through Farmforce, family members, including relatives and children, can be linked to individual farmers. This helps Whittaker’s, along with NGOs and our farming cooperatives, identify and tackle any potential social issues such as child labour, to foster ethical and sustainable practices.

• GPS field mapping: We can view the precise geographic distribution of all the farmers we work with, and their fields in Google Maps. This helps us make sure there is no growing activity in protected forest areas or that could contribute to deforestation. Farmforce works with Global Forest Watch to help tackle deforestation.

• Yield forecasting: We can use Farmforce to predict crop production timelines and anticipate potential impacts from the likes of pest or disease outbreaks. We can then aggregate the forecast across all farmers growing our cocoa beans, which provides insights for achieving production targets.

• Compliance: At Whittaker’s, we are committed to making sure that the ingredients we use are grown and harvested in a way which is ethical and more sustainable for the planet. As part of this, we are proud to partner with Rainforest Alliance. Farmforce allows us to track farming activities year-round, including crop varieties and the use of any fertilisers or chemicals. This visibility is crucial to ensure we continue to achieve compliance with the Rainforest Alliance and bring Chocolate Lovers the very best Rainforest Alliance certified products.

These are only some of the ways that using Farmforce, helps increase the transparency of our cocoa sourcing process.

Whittaker’s co-Chief Operating Officer, Matt Whittaker says Whittaker’s strives to do what we do in a good, honest way, which is why funding Farmforce is so important.

“In addition to the time we spend on the ground in Ghana, this digital information management system allows us to support our farming cooperatives build a brighter and more sustainable future. It also gives us and Chocolate Lovers confidence in the ethical and sustainable journey of our cocoa beans from farm to factory,” says Matt.

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Become a Chocolate Lover, and we’ll keep you in the loop with the work we are doing to support our farmers and bring you good, honest chocolate. Or, if you have a question about our Ghana cooperatives or the transparency of our cocoa beans, please get in touch!