• HORIZONS sustainable cocoa and chocolate products aim to improve cocoa farmer livelihood through increased productivity and community development
• HORIZONS cocoa succeeds Barry Callebaut’s Quality Partner Program
• Verification of sustainability activities and distribution of premiums
• Innovative set of narratives “Cocoa Chronicles” available to customers to drive consumer demand for sustainable cocoa and chocolate

Barry Callebaut, the world’s leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products, today announced the launch of the HORIZONS range of sustainable cocoa and chocolate products. This further promotes Barry Callebaut’s efforts to scale impact and drive change on the ground to improve the livelihood of cocoa farmers and their communities.

Sustainable HORIZONS products

Sustainable HORIZONS cocoa and chocolate products are sold by Barry Callebaut with a premium used to help improve the livelihoods of cocoa farmers and their communities. These customer premiums are channeled to the recently announced Cocoa Horizons Foundation to fund cocoa sustainability activities such as farmer training and support, and community development, in a transparent and externally verified process. The Cocoa Horizons Foundation serves as a new platform for chocolate companies and other contributors to invest in sustainable cocoa. It relies on Barry Callebaut’s expertise to implement the sustainability activities.

On the ground, Barry Callebaut’s sustainability team works with cooperatives and its own direct sourcing and farm services organizations to implement these activities for the benefit of registered farmers and farmer groups. Cocoa produced by farmers involved in these activities - currently about 25,000 - will be sold as Barry Callebaut’s sustainable HORIZONS cocoa and chocolate products.

These products are sold to food manufacturers as well as artisanal and professional customers and include cocoa beans, cocoa nibs, cocoa liquor, cocoa butter, cocoa powder, and chocolate. The cocoa is sourced from Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Tanzania.

HORIZONS cocoa is the successor to Barry Callebaut’s previous Quality Partner Program. With the creation of the Cocoa Horizons Foundation, it has evolved and improved to better scale impact. It focuses on farm productivity and community development to address on the ground challenges. It offers transparency on the use of funds and the breakdown of premiums. HORIZONS cocoa also includes the traceability of beans from farm to warehouse. Furthermore, the cocoa sustainability activities and the distribution of premiums are verified externally on an annual basis.

Antoine de Saint-Affrique, CEO Barry Callebaut, comments: "I am excited about the development of HORIZONS cocoa and chocolate products, with the focus on supporting our customers on their sustainability journey. We also expect to attract new customers for these sustainable products, thereby scaling impact and driving change in cocoa sustainability globally."

The Cocoa Chronicles

In order to help its customers drive consumer demand for sustainable cocoa, Barry Callebaut has developed an innovative set of narratives, the “Cocoa Chronicles”, which are driven by consumer benefits. These will enable customers of the HORIZONS products to leverage sustainability initiatives through their brands.

Bringing to life the complex world of sustainability in a meaningful and engaging way is a challenging but important task in driving a brand’s purpose and positioning. In order to add value for its customers, Barry Callebaut and its partners gathered extensive consumer and market research to build a robust catalogue of stories, satisfying the wide variety of customer targets. Each narrative is coupled with on-the-ground proof points, from facts and stats to farmer quotes and testimonials. Inspiration for ways in which customers can bring stories to life is also provided.

Customers of Barry Callebaut’s HORIZONS products will receive full access to the Chronicles and invaluable support. A publicly available peek into the Cocoa Chronicles is available online: www.cocoachronicles.org.

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About Barry Callebaut Group:
With annual sales of about CHF 6.2 billion (EUR 5.6 billion / USD 6.6 billion) in fiscal year 2014/15, the Zurich-based Barry Callebaut Group is the world’s leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products – from sourcing and processing cocoa beans to producing the finest chocolates, including chocolate fillings, decorations and compounds. The Group runs more than 50 production facilities worldwide and employs a diverse and dedicated global workforce of more than 9,000 people.
The Barry Callebaut Group serves the entire food industry, from industrial food manufacturers to artisanal and professional users of chocolate, such as chocolatiers, pastry chefs, bakers, hotels, restaurants or caterers. The two global brands catering to the specific needs of these Gourmet customers are Callebaut® and Cacao Barry®.The Barry Callebaut Group is committed to sustainable cocoa production to help ensure future supplies of cocoa and improve farmer livelihoods. It supports the Cocoa Horizons Foundation in its goal to shape a sustainable cocoa and chocolate future.

About the Cocoa Horizons Foundation (www.cocoahorizons.org):
The Cocoa Horizons Foundation was formally established on February 25, 2015 in Zurich, Switzerland and is supervised by the Swiss Federal Foundation Supervisory Authority. Its mission is to improve the livelihoods of cocoa farmers and their communities through the promotion of sustainable, entrepreneurial farming, improved productivity and community development. The Foundation’s Board of Directors includes two directors appointed by Barry Callebaut and one independent, external director. The Foundation is audited annually to demonstrate compliance with Swiss federal regulations.