Over the next five years, Hershey will expand and accelerate programs to improve cocoa communities by investing $10 million in West Africa and continuing to work with experts in agriculture, community development and government to achieve progress with cocoa farmers and their families.
By 2017, Hershey's public and private partnerships will directly benefit 750 000 African cocoa farmers and over two million people in cocoa communities across the region. Because cocoa farms are family farms, improving farming increases family income. Today, West African farmers can increase their cocoa output by 50% through modern methods. Doing so will increase school attendance and improve community health.
"Hershey is extending our commitment with new programs to drive long-term change in cocoa villages where families will benefit from our investments in education, health and economic opportunities," said J.P. Bilbrey, president and CEO of The Hershey Company. "Our global consumers want us to be a leader in responsible business practices and in finding smart ways to benefit cocoa communities. We are excited and humbled by this opportunity to create positive change in West Africa."
In 2011, Hershey introduced an innovative mobile phone program in Ghana, known as CocoaLink, to reach thousands of farmers with practical messages about growing cocoa and family health. Today, more than two-thirds of cocoa farmers in Ghana are using low-cost mobile phones in their households.
Based on the success of the company's CocoaLink mobile phone project in Ghana, Hershey said that it is planning to expand the network into the Ivory Coast. Through CocoaLink, cocoa farmers receive text and voice messages that enable them to improve farming practices, understand issues related to pests and adverse weather conditions, improve labour practices and ask questions of cocoa experts in real time.
Hershey and its partner, Source Trust, has also announced a new initiative known as Hershey Learn to Grow. Through this initiative, Hershey will create a farmer and family development centre in the heart of Ghana's central cocoa region. Source Trust is a non-profit organisation set up to help farmers improve their livelihoods through better crop yields and quality, achieved through sustainable farming practices. The program will start this year and involve more than 5 000 cocoa community members, in addition to more than 1 000 farm families.
