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The commitment forms part of the chocolate manufacturers drive to source its entire cocoa supply from certified sustainable source by 2020, against a 2009 baseline.
Based on its current buying arrangements, Mars said it will have purchased nearly 90,000tonnes of certified cocoa by the end of 2012.
Estimating that demand for cocoa will outstrip global supply by 1m tonnes by 2020, Mars said it has developed a strategy to manage this challenge and support farmers worldwide as part of its Sustainable Cocoa Initiative.
Mars Chocolate global procurement and sustainability head Barry Parkin, said: “We are pleased to have reached another critical milestone in our Sustainable Cocoa Initiative.
“A successful certification program is so important to our effort because it is the most effective tool we currently have to reach millions of cocoa farmers at scale. It took a lot of hard work from farmers, certifiers, and others along the supply chain to meet this milestone, and we are pleased to see their energy paying off.”
Mars is working with leading certification organisations, the Rainforest Alliance, Fairtrade International, and UTZ Certified to gain certification of its cocoa supplies. Currently, six of Mars’s products have gained certification, which it hopes to increase year-on-year.
Carys Matthews
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