Cameroon - Increasing biodiversity and protecting forests
One of our Forever Chocolate commitments, to become carbon and forest positive, falls within the topic of Thriving Nature. With a holistic approach, many solutions overlap to support numerous commitments. For example, introducing a diverse farm model with multiple crops not only supports farmer livelihood but also helps to improve soil quality and capture carbon, helping to mitigate the effects of climate change.
In Cameroon, we are distributing new cocoa seedlings to help increase yields, and decrease the amount of land used for cocoa. Additionally, we are establishing nurseries for non-cocoa crops to enable the planting of diverse species on farm. By steadily increasing the amount of replanting and intercropping, we are able to realize the previously mentioned benefits. Additionally, maintaining existing forests is a priority, so farmers participating in our sustainability programs are being mapped to ensure that their farms do not encroach upon protected forest, as well as to ensure that cocoa in our programs is free from deforestation.