Armajaro Trading Ltd has set up a dedicated team specializing in Traceability and Sustainability (T&S) across all commodities that Armajaro supports. The team is headed by Nicko Debenham, director responsible for Traceability and Sustainability. The other team members are: Kerry Turner, Tracey Higgins and Theresa Ntim.

Nicko Debenham has worked 22 years in the cocoa industry with an emphasis on Africa and has worked at Armajaro Trading for 7 year with responsibility for their African operation.

He has been responsible for the successful implementation of traceable and sustainable supply chains in Ghana and Ivory Coast including Cocobod Armajaro Traceable Foundation Cocoa, Rainforest Alliance Certified Ivory Coast Cocoa and ICCO Total Quality Traceable Cocoa

His knowledge of the industry is based on the many years experience in Africa and the experience of establishing sources and supply chains for traceable and sustainable cocoa

Our extensive presence in the key production origins enables us to help empower farmers by investing in and supporting training programmes and initiatives that assist growers to improve their profitability and working conditions.  These include:

• Working in cooperation with other companies and associations in the cocoa industry to provide support to the industry wide programmes being run by the World Cocoa Foundation and the International Cocoa Initiative.
• Providing training and field support to growers to improve the quality and yields of their cocoa crop, thereby enhancing the returns they receive for their crop.
• Investment in “up country” receiving stations within the production regions to minimise transport costs and to improve quality.
• Providing market information and research to co-operatives to assist them to maximise returns to their farmer members.

We are the sole supplier in a Private Public Partnership launched in Côte d’Ivoire in November 2005 to promote certified sustainable cocoa produced to Rainforest Alliance standards.  The Project has pilots running in the Daloa and Abengourou regions and aims to deliver economic, ecological and social benefits.  Growers are encouraged to practise sustainable production methods using the Rainforest Alliance’s internationally accepted standards in order to obtain premium pricing from product differentiation.  For more information click here to download presentation.
 
We consider that traceability is key to the long term success of any sustainability initiative and therefore we have invested in software systems and training to provide traceability for the projects we are involved with.  In 2007 we successfully implemented a project to source traceable cocoa in Ghana.

Through our membership of the European Cocoa Association we support the work of the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) which was set up in 2002 under Swiss law in Geneva.   ICI is a product of active cooperation between the global chocolate industry, politicians, members of the labour movement and individuals engaged in the fight against child and forced labour.   ICI’s mission is to oversee and sustain efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labour and forced labour in the growing and processing of cocoa beans and their derivative products.  Click here to read more about ICI.

Armajaro is an active member of the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) which was established in 2000 and plays a leading role in strengthening the partnership between the cocoa industry and cocoa farmers.  With over sixty member companies, WCF supports a range of social, environmental and economic programmes in cocoa communities in West Africa, Asia and Central America.  WCF programmes work to improve the sustainability of cocoa production by helping farmers to improve the quality and economic returns of their crops whilst providing training on responsible, safe labour practices.  Click here to read more about WCF.