Entry: Robert Peck, World Cocoa Foundation

This was my first trip to Dominican Republic (DR), a country whose friendly people and great history make it a special place to visit. As a cocoa-producing origin, DR has been a global leader in organizing farmers and incorporating new standards into the production systems to supply cocoa users with certified beans (including organic, Rain Forest, Fair Trade, UTZ and others). I’d like to specifically thank World Cocoa Foundation Members: Commercial Roig and Rizek Cacao for hosting me during this visit.

Distances in the DR have a different connotation from other producing origins, as within a 2-hour trip on paved highways you can travel from the country’s capital, Santo Domingo, to major producing areas such as San Francisco De Macoris. I was invited by Gabriel Roig to visit their processing facilities and was highly impressed with the logistic and traceability operations to ferment, dry, clean and pack cocoa while fully separating cocoa batches throughout the entire process.

From left to right: José María Pantaleon, Gabriel Roig, myself, and Francisco Lopez, during the visit at Commercial Roig’s processing facilities.

What made this trip an eye-opening experience is that DR is a showcase for interested parties on implementing and operating cocoa standards in origin countries. From this brief visit, I have some observations to share with you:

• BEAN QUALITY – Having attended various meetings on cocoa certification initiatives, the discussions have sometimes been dominated by discussing implementation challenges and monitoring issues around thousands of farmers in remote areas. The basic physical bean attributes NEED to continue to be the priority. No matter if a cocoa bean is being sold under the conventional market or certified by a specific program, the bean needs to be fermented properly. It will ultimately be processed by equipment that works efficiently when the raw material is uniform and clean. It will ultimately be used by a chocolate company to match a specific flavor profile. Bean quality will continue to be a basic priority.

• CONTROLS AND FOLLOWING PROCEDURES – As simple as it sounds, the ability to maintain records/data and constantly follow guidelines, become the key factors and determinants of a successful, trusted and reliable supply chain. No matter if beans are certified or for a main stream market, reliability and contract specifications are practices that must be fully satisfied by successful cooperatives and exporters.

• TRACEABILITY - Supply chain custody is what is at stake in the DR’s cocoa sector – a system where consumers of raw materials and finished goods can trace goods purchased back to a specific producer; a system where users of the commodity can monitor this key ingredient throughout the supply chain; a system that allows the exporter to personalize their services and tailor specific cocoa batches to buyer specifications; and a system where farmers incorporate standards into the traditional farming practices. From a farmer’s perspective, the specific scheme he/she decides to implement will redeem additional environmental, social and/or economic benefits.

But at the end of the day, the farmer makes a conscious decision and evaluates whether the additional income received offsets the additional effort undertaken to incorporate a new standard in his/her farming practices.

Myself and José Fernandez.

José has side grafted a large percentage of his trees and implemented two different certification standards; although the traditional harvest season is ending, his trees are loaded with pods and flowers for the next batch of pods!