We are celebrating Silva Cacao’s 5th anniversary this month.

In our opinion the perfect moment to pause, look back, reflect, adapt, learn and plan ahead to continue to make a difference to Flavour, Farmers, Forests and the Future.

We are happy to share with you what we have experienced and learned so far,
and inform you about some of the challenges we face in the cacao and chocolate sector.

Please find below a nice recap of Silva Cacao’s interesting insights and valuable lessons learned.

SILVA CACAO | WHY & HOW IT ALL STARTED

Silva Cacao is celebrating its 5th year! This still sounds very young, but actually a long journey of many years of experience and knowledge preceded the official launch of Silva Cacao.

Katrien‘s journey started in 2006 in Bolivia, where she trained farmers to diversify and increase their income through agroforestry, coffee and cacao production. From the start, the quest has been a search for harmony between people, nature and economy. The time before the actual launch of Silva Cacao covers 10 years of intensive work with coffee farmers: a decade filled with sourcing towards value creation for these farmers; and numerous implementations of large-scale forest restoration projects.

In the years that followed, Katrien became increasingly intrigued by the cacao and chocolate landscape. After more than 1 year of intensive learning, studying, traveling to cacao countries and talking to chocolate makers, Silva Cacao was founded at the end of 2018, based on the belief that the cacao business should be approached differently. Not the usual buying and selling of cacao, but holistic sourcing, creating value throughout the cacao chain and connecting cacao farmers and chocolate makers.

Whether you’ve been part of Silva Cacao’s community for a while or just checked in, you probably know that our motivation is to make a difference for flavour, forests, farmers and their future – and to have fun while doing it!

5 YEARS SILVA CACAO | FACTS & FIGURES

5 YEARS SILVA CACAO | INSIGHTS & LESSONS LEARNED

• Although constantly evolving, the Bean to Bar scene is still (far too) small. We do not even represent 1% of the chocolate market share. By comparison, other sectors such as beer, wine, cheese and coffee easily reach 10%.

• But in recent years there has been a change, a positive movement is underway. More specifically, the past few months in which a great moment was reached during the Porto Chocolate Festival and a first intention emerged to shape a Federation of Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers and Aficionados worldwide.

• ‘Cacao with an Identity’ has been our slogan from the start. Luckily this philosophy of working towards full traceability and transparency from bean to bar is slowly becoming the ‘general norm’. There is still a long way to go to deliver better quality cacao…

• The cacao market has been very disruptive. Only in five years during Covid in 2019 we saw a low in the international market of 2.1 USD/kg. Today, market prices have doubled, reaching 4.2 USD/kg for conventional cacao. This is a result of cacao shortages in West Africa, globally changing weather patterns with a strong El Niño year and market speculation. The volatility of the commodity market creates poverty at certain times and opportunity at others. But it is especially very unstable for cacao producers and organisations. This is why we still strongly believe in diversifying and decommoditising the market, with true respect for cacao producers and value for quality.

• Sustainability has become a buzzword, a trend. The real challenge is to look at the real and authentic work being done in the field.

• We truly and unconditionally love our work, but sometimes reality couldn’t be further from the orderly arranged colorful snapshots you sometimes see on Instagram.

• Sourcing cacao with an identity means building genuine & strong partnerships together. This is very different from purchasing & distributing quality cacao beans. Sourcing is a bumpy and complex journey that rarely goes according to plan. Each sourcing area is different, has its own context, challenges or work intensity. It concerns pre-financing systems, export permits, sharing knowledge, quality attitude, investing time, resources and energy to achieve that goal.

• Cacao producers are at the beginning and are the key to making great chocolate possible, but they are often ‘forgotten’. Understanding the reality in the field is and remains an enormous challenge. The circumstances in which our local heroes live and work are not always so obvious. Not having all the right knowledge, training and infrastructure can sometimes cause serious problems. Even though we strive for perfection, taking local realities into account is a must!

• Could it be that we are at a turning point in chocolate land, where – reinforced by the new ‘due diligence’ and ‘deforestation-free’ legislation – real and authentic cacao/chocolate can really stand out once and for all ? Or would it be ‘clouded’ by very smart and bright looking initiatives from outside, which at the core do not really implement a change and go for value?​

• Its strength lies in the genuine interest of real chocolate makers who want to make a difference for flavour, forests, farmers and the future, and want to translate this message to their consumers.

• You can’t bring about positive change in the cacao country on your own. A network of like-minded partners who share the same values creates more impact than the size of any one company could. That’s why we couldn’t be happier to always be in good company and collaborate with complementary partners.

5 YEARS SILVA CACAO | CACAO CHALLENGES

Although we at Silva wish to see the positive side of everything, there are still many sector challenges that we need to be fully aware of:

• Climate change is hitting very hard, and has a direct impact on cacao productivity, diseases, fluctuating harvesting periods etc. This has impact on cacao volumes, prices and quality, and results in changes on the micro- and macrolevel.

• Although the quality of cacao is being valorised more than ever in the specialty markets, this does not (yet) ensure differentiation in bulk volumes and is certainly not yet the norm. Not to mention the lack of knowledge among end users who still choose their chocolate based on colour and %.

• The new European legislation EUDR on deforestation and the CSR reporting directive force companies to measure and report on their progress and impact on the environment, society and governance –or ESG. This brings challenges for everyone along the value chain. The power will be in the data. But data collection is not the goal ‘as such’. Data collection is the way, the ‘how’. Measuring and comparing data should not become the goal in itself, a task that you have to ‘check off’. The positive result of this data collection will be the resulting actions that will actually generate a positive impact along the whole value chain. Let’s hope the sector will look beyond the forest, considering the interactive web between socio-economic changes, livelihoods, biodiversity, healthy soils, etc, .

• Secured pre-Financing systems are still for the lucky few. Many cacao produces do not have access to capital, making them highly dependent and offering limited development opportunities.

• Lately, SUSTAINability has become a common and trending topic. The first part “SUSTAIN” means making  things last for the future,  in a market where loyalty between the different supply chain actors is often forgotten, and old-school price squeezing and opportunism drive business. Let’s keep this in mind…

• Know-how on cacao growing, processing, trading, transformation,… is very unequally distributed. How can we structurally bridge this knowledge gap?

5 YEARS of TAKING CARE of
FLAVOUR, FORESTS, FARMERS, FUTURE whilst having FUN

5 YEARS OF TAKING CARE OF FLAVOUR

• 1,845 cacao samples were analysed

• 435 different cacao qualities were tested

• 11 of the cacao’s in our portfolio have received a ‘Cocoa of Excellence’ award

• Numerous ‘International Chocolate Awards’ were presented to our wonderful chocolate makers – who made these fantastic creations with great beans

• 48 new cacao varieties were launched for the first time on the European specialty chocolate market

• Continuously searching for hidden gems that excel in quality and consistency

5 YEARS OF TAKING CARE OF FORESTS

• 1,700 trees planted, capturing the emission of 54 Europeans every year

• Countless trees are protected by encouraging the continued implementation of agroforestry models in all cacao-producing countries in which we work

• First scientifically substantiated pilot case with deforestation-free cacao and chocolate from the Ecuadorian Amazon, fully traceable down to plot level!

• 3 chains with proven ‘carbon positive’ cacao in Guatemala, Dominican Republic and Ecuador. Chocolate made from these beans: the more you eat, the better for the planet ;-)

5 YEARS OF TAKING CARE OF FARMERS

• Visiting 18 different cacao producing countries, many of them multiple times 😉

• Collaborations with 46 producer organisations and social enterprises; from micro lots from individual farms to full container loads from cooperatives

• Directly improving the opportunities, empowerment and prosperity of more than 3,500 cacao entrepreneurs. Furthermore, this steady support also generates a positive ripple effect on even more cacao families.

• Continuity in the sourcing of cacao creates stability on the part of the producers, despite extraordinary circumstances in COVID times or due to climatic setbacks

Unparalleled human encounters with countless cacao producers, resulting in long-lasting friendships

5 YEARS OF TAKING CARE OF FUTURE

• Raising the bar in the specialty cacao landscape, building meaningful partnerships that delight farmers and chocolate makers

• Promoting purposeful partnership models that work for the future, not one-sided, not colonial or neo-colonial, but demonstrating a good understanding of what needs to be done.

• Creating new markets for cacao producers that are sustainable for the future, after vigorous and hard work, and meeting consistency and quality standards.

Daring to stand out and be different, honouring the role of a true sourcer and creating value for everyone along the chain.

WHILST HAVING FUN

• Attending 22 chocolate fairs and events and having countless professional and amicable meetings and encounters

• Being fortunate to have so many cacao and chocolate friends all over the world, who share the same values and strive to make ‘chocolate land’ a better place for everyone.

    A big shout-out to all our cacao-entrepreneurs and chocolate-partners is therefore rightly in order: Cheers to all our fabulous farmers,
post-harvesting heroes, fabulous fermentation experts, forward-thinking NGO’s and government institutions, smart logistic geniuses,
sweet chocolate maker instigators, smart chocolate educators, consultants & journalists, …

You rock!
    Thanks for rolling with us!

“We are immensely proud of the work we do and the difference it makes to individuals, the local community and the specialty cacao landscape. We continue to go from strength to strength and are excited about our shared future. On to the next 5 years!”

Katrien Delaet ~ Chief Cacaopreneur