International Cocoa Council and subsidiary bodies, including the Consultative Board on the World Cocoa Economy

The International Cocoa Council and subsidiary bodies, including the Consultative Board on the World Cocoa Economy, will meet 20 – 23 September, 2011.

Outcome of the March 2011 meetings of the International Cocoa Council and subsidiary bodies, including the Consultative Board on the World Cocoa Economy

At a Press Conference held on 25 March, 2011 and attended by the Chairman of the International Cocoa Council and the Chairman of the Executive Committee, Dr. Jean-Marc Anga, Executive Director a.i., reported on several of the topics reviewed by delegates at the March 2011 meetings.

[media-downloader media_id=”2509″ texts=” Please click here to download the full Press Statement.”]

Presentations made at the ICCO meetings of March 2011:

icon African Capacity Building Foundation (ABCF) (Word document)

icon United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) (PowerPoint presentation)

[media-downloader media_id=”4136″ texts=” International Cocoa Awards (PDF presentation)”]

Outcome of the International Workshop on the Safe Use of Pesticides and Harmonization of Legislation for Food Safety, 25-27 January 2011, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The International Workshop on the Safe Use of Pesticides in Cocoa and Harmonized Legislation for Food Safety was held at the Renaissance Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 25-27 January, 2011 with generous sponsorship provided by the Malaysian Cocoa Board, the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture, and Innovation of the Netherlands and the Dutch Sustainable Trade Initiative.

The Workshop was jointly organized by the ICCO and the Malaysian Cocoa Board. The overall objective of the Workshop was to promote the safe use of pesticides throughout the cocoa value chain and to enhance the process of harmonization of legislation and regulations on pesticide residues in cocoa and related products, including standardization of analytical methods on pesticide residues.

The International Workshop brought together more than 200 participants from 18 countries spanning the five continents of the world. They included representatives from cocoa producers, traders, exporters, processors, chocolate manufacturers, chemical manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers, governmental and non-governmental organizations, research institutions and universities. The workshop was conducted over three days with 15 presentations in four focus areas, each followed by a Question and Answer session and by panel discussions. The four focus areas were: legislation for food safety and analytical methods; the safe use of pesticides; alternatives to pesticides; and perspectives on pesticide legislation from key stakeholders. On the final day, following active deliberations between the audience and the prominent experts serving on the Panel, the Workshop adopted a list of final recommendations.

[media-downloader media_id=”2481″ texts=” Please see the attached PDF document for further details.”]

Presentations

International Workshop Presentations

TV Interview given by Dr. Jean-Marc Anga, Executive Director a.i. to Thomson Reuters

Please use the following link to view the recent TV Interview given by Dr. Jean-Marc Anga, Executive Director a.i. to Thomson Reuters.

TV Interview given by Dr. Jean-Marc Anga. (External Link)

ICCO Membership News January 2011

The Executive Director is pleased to announce that Switzerland joined the International Cocoa Agreement, 2010 on 22 December 2010 and that Sierra Leone joined the International Cocoa Agreement, 2001 on 4 October 2010.

SPS capacity building in Africa to mitigate the harmful effects of pesticides residues in cocoa and to maintain market access

DURATION:
 Two years
LOCATION:
 CAMEROON, CÔTE D’IVOIRE, GHANA, NIGERIA, TOGO
NATURE OF PROJECT:
 Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards
ESTIMATED TOTAL COST:
 US$ 6,264,109
GRANT FINANCING:
 US$ 593,460 – STDF
EXTERNAL CO-FINANCING:
 US$ 3,43,700 EDES; CropLife Africa; UNDP
COUNTERPART FINANCING:
 US$ 2,326,949
PROJECT EXECUTING AGENCY (PEA):
 Fonds Interprofessionnel pour la recherche et le Conseil Agricole (FIRCA)
PROJECT SUPERVISORY BODY:
 International Cocoa Organization (ICCO)
PROJECT STARTING DATE:
 January 2011
COMPLETION DATE:
 December 2013

 

Brief Description

The objective of the project is to maintain market access for cocoa beans from Africa through capacity building in SPS, in order to produce good quality cocoa that complies with the relevant international regulations and legislation on pesticide residues and other harmful substances.

 
Project Status

The project was completed and closed in December 2013.

 
Implementation Results

[media-downloader media_id="846" texts="Please click here to download the Project Completion Report (PCR)"]

 

SPS Capacity Building in Africa to Mitigate the Harmful Effects of Pesticides Residues in Cocoa and to Maintain Market Access

DURATION:
 Two years
LOCATION:
 CAMEROON, CÔTE D’IVOIRE, GHANA, NIGERIA, TOGO
NATURE OF PROJECT:
 Market Access and Market Development
ESTIMATED TOTAL COST:
 US$ 6,264,109
STDF/WTO GRANT:
 US$ 593,460
CO-FINANCING:
 US$ 3,343,700
COUNTERPART FINANCING:
 US$ 2,326,949
PROJECT EXECUTING AGENCY (PEA):
 Fonds Interprofessionnel pour la Recherche et le Conseil Agricole (FIRCA), Côte d’Ivoire
PROJECT SUPERVISORY BODY:
 International Cocoa Organization (ICCO)
PROJECT STARTING DATE:
 January 2011
COMPLETION DATE:
 December 2013

 

Brief Description

The main activities of the project will include creating awareness among cocoa farmers and other stakeholders along the cocoa supply chain about SPS standards in cocoa;  enhancing the capacity of relevant stakeholders to apply the rational pesticides use component of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and Good Warehousing Practices (GWP); enhancing the institutional capacity in-country to monitor and enforce adherence to SPS standards in cocoa; and strengthen regional collaboration to support institutional capacity in individual countries to apply SPS standards in cocoa.

 
Project Objectives

The overall objective of this project is to maintain market access for cocoa beans from Africa through capacity building in Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards (SPS), in order to produce good quality cocoa that complies with the relevant international regulations and legislations on pesticides residues and other harmful substances.

 
Implementation Status

Project implementation under the STDF grant was completed by 31/12/2013. The project results and dissemination workshop was organized in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, from 10-13 December 2013 and the presentations and report can be viewed on the project website.  21 recommendations were agreed to further strengthen the results of the project in addressing cocoa SPS issues.

 

The five countries involved in the project expressed a strong willingness to pursue the efforts initiated during the project.  They decided to collaborate, exchange and share experiences and to meet on regular basis to review progress. A website has been set up (www.icco.org/sps) to present information on project activities and SPS regulations.