A Pennsylvania-based organic chocolate company announced this week it is planning a series of sustainable transformations intended to improve the company's bottom line, reduce operational redundancies and lessen its environmental impact.
Dagoba Organic Chocolate, a subsidiary of the Hershey Company, reported Wednesday that its complete line of USDA Certified Organic chocolate products is now made with cacao beans from farms certified by the Rainforest Alliance, an organization devoted to helping farmers and land-dependent peoples transform the way they grow food, harvest wood and host travelers. The move is part of the company's larger effort to improve its sustainability efforts and Lean practices.
Within a few months, consumers will be able to buy Dagoba Organic Chocolate products bearing the Rainforest Alliance Certified seal, which means the cacao beans used in production were grown on sustainably managed farms that protect the environment and help local communities. It also ensures safe working conditions, dignified housing, just wages and access to education for children.
Aside from a social and environmental imperative, Dagoba's sustainable transformation is also aimed at improving its financial standing, as the practices help reduce costs and serve as a viable marketing credit as well.
“Through Rainforest Alliance certification, farmers learn to better manage their farms, adopting sustainable practices that improve efficiency, reduce costs and often help to improve crop quality,” said Tensie Whelan, president of the Rainforest Alliance. “By sourcing cacao from Rainforest Alliance Certified farms, the Dagoba brand is helping to support a healthier planet, while providing consumers with sustainable, high quality products.”
Dagoba has sourced from farmlands and working communities in Tanzania, the Dominican Republic and Peru, helping to optimize fermentation practices, support social and ecological well-being and certify thousands of farmers in developing regions of the world.
“The Dagoba brand takes unparalleled measures to ensure cacao farms are following the highest quality standards to produce the best certified organic cacao in the world,” said Ray Major, who leads cacao sourcing and development at Dagoba. “Working with the Rainforest Alliance, whose certification has the strongest voice in the area of environmental stewardship, ensures that these efforts are sustainable over the long term.”