Cocoa Farmers Grateful To Cadbury

A cocoa tree with a good yield

A number of cocoa farmers in the Fanteakwa District in the Eastern Region have expressed their appreciation to Cadbury, a multi-national cocoa buying and processing company, for assisting them to boost cocoa production in the area.

The farmers also thanked the company for providing them with some basic amenities.

They expressed their appreciation when a two-member delegation from Cadbury visited the area Friday to acquaint themselves with the challenges confronting the farmers and also find out whether its assistance has been beneficial to the cocoa farmers, most of whom depend on small holdings.

The Cadbury team comprised Mr Stuart Mcdonald and Mr Steward Macdonald of Stuart Foods, the parent company of Cadbury in the United Kingdom.

They visited Bonkame, Juaso and Dome, are mong the largest cocoa-growing areas in Fanteakwa.

Under the Cadbury Cocoa Partnership, the company has been assisting cocoa farmers in some parts of the Eastern Region, notably the Fanteakwa and West Akyem districts.

Items such as bicycles have been given to schoolchildren to facilitate their movement to and from school. Solar lamps have also been provided for farmers in those communities.

The farmers have also been schooled on best cocoa farming practices, in collaboration with Fairtrade, an organisation dedicated to the education of cocoa farmers.

Speaking on behalf of the cocoa farmers, the Chief of Dome, Nana Krofa Twum II, said the assistance given by Cadbury had started impacting positively on the farmers and the communities, as it was boosting cocoa production and making it possible for them to get more funds for their upkeep and that of their dependants.

The Cadbury officials visited some of the cocoa farms and saw the golden pods for the first time. They were accompanied by the Director of the Cadbury Cocoa Partnership Project, Obaa Yaa Amekudzi, and a representative of Fairtrade, Mr Samuel Adimado.

Speaking to the press after the visit, Obaa Yaa Amekudzi said 209 cocoa-growing communities in the Eastern, Western and the Brong Ahafo regions were being covered and added that apart from tackling cocoa production, the social needs of each community were addressed and these included health, gender and child labour issues.

She said the cocoa farmers had formed societies and applied to be certified by Fairtrade, having passed the auditing.

For his part, Mr Adimado expressed happiness that the cocoa farmers had been adhering to the guidelines offered by Fairtrade.