Entry: Meg Young, World Cocoa Foundation

Two weeks ago, the World Cocoa Foundation celebrated the diversity of cocoa origins during our 19th WCF Partnership Meeting & Roundtable Discussions in San Francisco, California. The two day session featured excellent speakers representing the breadth of the cocoa field, including Kraft Foods, USAID, USDA, Pennsylvania State University, and Olam International Ltd. In addition, the diverse and engaged audience included over 200 participants from 32 different countries.

We had a record number of delegates from Nigeria, Liberia and Indonesia, and our VIP list included Ministry-level representatives from Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Liberia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, the Netherlands and United States. It was a pleasure interacting with WCF research fellows who attended the meeting from Indonesia, Liberia, Nigeria and the Philippines.

Pictured: WCF Partnership Meeting participants enjoy dessert at an ice cream social sponsored by the Ghirardelli Chocolate Company

This meeting was an excellent reminder that WCF’s Partnership Meetings provide an important platform for honoring leaders in cocoa sustainability, assessing progress and challenges, and exchanging new ideas and viewpoints. As we celebrate this event we also turn our sites toward Accra for our next WCF Partnership Meeting, which will be held on October 26 and 27, 2011. We hope to see you there!