Bolsters Hershey's commitment to
support increased incomes for cocoa farming households
Supports objectives included in Côte
d'Ivoire's National Strategy for Sustainable Cocoa
HERSHEY,
Pa., April 27, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hershey
Company (NYSE: HSY) today announced the launch of its Income
Accelerator in Côte d'Ivoire. The program will support increased
incomes for cocoa farming households through the provision of cash
transfers (CTs) and investments in village savings and loan
associations (VSLAs). Designed and implemented with input from the
Conseil du Café-Cacao, the Rainforest Alliance and CARE, the Income
Accelerator offers a proven, multi-faceted approach to help address
cocoa farmer poverty while also supporting sustainable farming
practices and mitigating the risk of child labor.
"The Income Accelerator is part of Hershey's long-term
commitment to make a real difference in the lives of cocoa farmers
and their children," said Jason
Reiman, Chief Supply Chain Officer at The Hershey Company.
"We are proud to begin this important initiative in collaboration
with the government of Côte d'Ivoire and our NGO partners.
Together, we can support better livelihoods for farming households
and ensure bright futures for cocoa-growing communities."
As part of the Income Accelerator, Hershey in partnership with
the Rainforest Alliance will distribute mobile cash transfers of up
to $600 per household per year to
approximately 5,000 cocoa farming households within its supply
chain. These CTs, which will offer an additional source of income
for households, will be based on the adoption of sustainable and
regenerative farm management practices that increase farm
profitability and resiliency to unexpected environmental
circumstances.
With the support of CARE and cocoa farmer cooperatives, Hershey
also plans to strengthen approximately 200 existing Village Savings
and Loan Associations (VSLAs) in its supply chain and establish
another 350 new VSLAs. These 550 VSLAs will support an estimated
15,000 members and their families. Through these combined efforts,
the program aims to yield meaningful incremental savings per
participant within three years of them becoming a VSLA member.
VSLAs provide members, particularly women and single mothers, a
local structure for increasing savings and accessing loans at low
interest rates in farming communities where formal banking and
micro-financing services are scarce.
"Low producer income is a root cause of child labor and
deforestation. We support this Income Accelerator program because
the issue of producer income is at the heart of our concerns," said
Yves Brahima Koné, Managing Director at Conseil du Café-Cacao.
The Income Accelerator is based on proven poverty reduction
strategies aimed at increasing incomes and supporting
professionalized farming practices. It is well aligned with
objectives included in the government of Côte d'Ivoire's National
Strategy for Sustainable Cocoa (SNCD). Research has shown that
farmers receiving financial literacy and farm business training via
CTs,1 and with access to savings and loans institutions,
are more likely to have higher household incomes and engagement of
women in household decision-making.2 With increased
incomes and more professionalized operations, farming households
are less likely to rely on children for hazardous work. They are
also more likely to have enhanced food security and additional
resources that can be invested in their children's education and
overall wellbeing.
Nanga Kone, Country Director for
Côte d'Ivoire at the Rainforest Alliance, said: "One of the most
urgent problems cocoa farmers face is that the income they get from
their crop is not enough to achieve a decent standard of living.
Combined with the impact of climate change, even in good years,
many smallholder farmers struggle to make ends meet. Guided by
three decades of research and experience, we believe that the
Income Accelerator will help ensure long-term financial and quality
of life benefit for cocoa farmers and their families in Côte
d'Ivoire. The Rainforest Alliance looks forward to working in
partnership with Hershey to help farmers link the short-term cash
payments to their farm's long-term sustainability and profitability
strategy."
"Since 1991, CARE has helped more than 13.5 million people join
savings groups, and we aim to engage 62 million people in savings
groups by 2030. Savings groups help women, girls and families
across the globe increase their incomes and access food and
healthcare. In fact, our research has shown that women who
participate in savings groups triple their incomes. Hershey's
continued investment and support for the VLSA program will have a
transformational impact on the lives of cocoa-producing families
and communities throughout Côte d'Ivoire," said Michelle Nunn, President and CEO at CARE.
The Income Accelerator is expected to positively impact no fewer
than 20,000 households within Hershey's supply chain and related
communities. To measure and evaluate progress, Hershey will
leverage tools and expertise provided by a Learning Advisory
Committee that includes Sustainable Food Lab and is chaired by the
Conseil du Café-Cacao. Updates on the program's progress will be
provided on the Hershey website and in its annual ESG report.
Hershey is committed to continued collaboration with industry and
governmental partners in Côte d'Ivoire to ensure the program has a
long-term beneficial impact for cocoa farming households.
About The Hershey Company
The Hershey Company is headquartered in Hershey, Pa., and is an industry-leading
snacks company known for bringing goodness to the world through its
iconic brands, remarkable people and enduring commitment to help
children succeed. Hershey has nearly 20,000 employees around the
world who work every day to deliver delicious, quality products.
The company has more than 100 brand names in approximately 80
countries around the world that drive $10.4
billion in annual revenues, including such iconic brand
names as Hershey's, Reese's, Kit Kat®, Jolly Rancher and Ice
Breakers, and fast-growing salty snacks including SkinnyPop,
Pirate's Booty and Dot's Homestyle Pretzels.
For more than 125 years, Hershey has been committed to operating
fairly, ethically and sustainably. Hershey founder,
Milton Hershey, created the Milton
Hershey School in 1909 and since then the company has focused on
helping children succeed.
To learn more visit thehersheycompany.com.
About CARE
Founded in 1945 with the creation of the CARE Package®, CARE is
a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. CARE
places special focus on working alongside women and girls. Equipped
with the proper resources women and girls have the power to lift
whole families and entire communities out of poverty. In 2022, CARE
worked in over 110 countries, reaching more than 170 million people
through 1,600 projects.
To learn more, visit www.care.org.
About Rainforest Alliance
The Rainforest Alliance is an international non-profit
organization working in 70 countries at the intersection of
business, agriculture and forests. The Rainforest Alliance is
creating a more sustainable world by using social and market forces
to protect nature and improve the lives of farmers and forest
communities. By bringing farmers, forest communities, companies,
and individuals together it addresses some of the most pressing
social and environmental challenges of today. The organization
changes the way the world produces, sources and consumes, with a
focus on cocoa, coffee, tea, bananas, and other tropical
commodities through its certification program, supply chain
services, landscape management, and advocacy. In 2021, more than 6
million hectares of farmland was certified against the Rainforest
Alliance or UTZ standards and 4 million farmers and farmworkers
participated in the Rainforest Alliance or UTZ certification
programs, which are designed to improve economic, environmental,
and social sustainability.
1 Bastagli, F., Hagen-Zanker, J., Harman, L., Barca,
V., Sturge, G., Schmidt, T., & Pellerano, L. (2016,
July 27). Cash transfers: What does
the evidence say? ODI.org.
https://odi.org/en/publications/cash-transfers-what-does-the-evidence-say-a-rigorous-review-of-impacts-and-the-role-of-design-and-implementation-features/
2 CARE (2022, August
18). VSLA By the Numbers: A Comprehensive Analysis of the
Impact and ROI of VSLAs. Care.org.
https://www.careevaluations.org/evaluation/vsla-by-the-numbers-a-comprehensive-analysis-of-the-impact-and-roi-of-vslas/
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hershey-launches-income-accelerator-in-cote-divoire-301810037.html
SOURCE The Hershey Company