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Group picture of the Annual General Meeting 2023

Degustation at Villars Maître Chocolatier

Factory visit at Villars Maître Chocolatier

Keynote address of Stephan Buchser, Directeur Général Villars Maître Chocolatier

Filippo Veglio, President of SWISSCO, started the statutory part. By the end of 2023, SWISSCO had more than 80 members.

There were three changes on the Board at the AGM 2023. In sector A (manufacturers and traders) Robert van Raamsdonk, Barry Callebaut (on the right), is leaving us, in sector B (retail sector) Bernhard Kammer, Migros (not in the picture), and in sector E (research) Ingrid Fromm, BFH-HAFL (in the middle). We thank them for their valuable contributions and wish them all the best.

Presentation by Ursina Krähenmann and Fabien Nizard from Koa about “Innovative payment models for reaching cocoa family households - Blockchain payment system implemented by KOA”.

Presentation by Martin Lobsiger from Delica about “From farmers to consumers and back: The Frey Chocolate “Côte d’Ivoire – Coopérative Necaayo” – a role model for both niche and mainstream markets?”.

Presentation by Julius Emmrich from Elucid about “Ensuring affordable health services for cocoa farming families in Madagascar and Ghana”.

Presentation by Petra Heid from HALBA about “Improving farmers’ and the ecosystem’s resilience through the dynamic agroforestry (DAF) approach”

Panel discussion “Scaling innovative approaches in cocoa and beyond – dos and don’ts, advantages and challenges, preconditions and limitations”

5th Annual General Assembly 2023

What a remarkable day we had at the 5th Annual General Assembly of SWISSCO on May 25, 2023, where we released our annual report, highlighting our achievements, challenges, and future plans.

We kicked off the day at Villars Maître Chocolatier, where we had the opportunity to visit their factory and immerse ourselves in the world of chocolate-making. Many thanks to the team of Villars Maître Chocolatier for making this possible! 

Filippo Veglio, President of SWISSCO, welcomed us warmly to commence the event. Then, Stephan Buchser, the Directeur Général of Villars Maître Chocolatier, delivered a captivating keynote address that shed light on the future of the chocolate industry.

Diving into the theme of the scalability of innovative approaches, we got to hear insights from various SWISSCO members and partners:

  • Koa, who shared insights into their innovative blockchain payment system for cocoa family households.
  • Delica, informed us about the Frey Chocolate "Côte d'Ivoire - Coopérative Necaayo" project, serving as a role model for both niche and mainstream markets.
  • Elucid demonstrated their efforts in ensuring affordable health services for cocoa farming families in Madagascar and Ghana.
  • HALBA/Division of Coop, shed light on the dynamic agroforestry (DAF) approach and its potential to enhance farmers' resilience and ecosystem sustainability.

After that, a dynamic panel discussion ensued, exploring the dos and don'ts, advantages and challenges, preconditions, and limitations of scaling innovative approaches in cocoa and beyond. The panel concluded that while there is a multitude of innovative approaches, scalability is feasible provided a stronger engagement to facilitate an enabling environment and more courage from corporate actors to take risks and create viable market solutions.

The panelists:

  • Barbora Tůmová, Expert on Cocoa Agroforestry, Value Chain and Markets Unit, FiBL
  • Mirjam van Leeuwen, Sustainability Manager, Chocolat Alprose (Baronie)
  • Martin Saladin, Head of Operations, Economic Cooperation and Development, SECO
  • Judith Beyeler, Sustainability Project Manager, Walter Matter
  • Yanick Lhommel, Business Development Manager Cacao / Sugar, Fairtrade Max Havelaar

 

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who made this event a resounding success. The day concluded with a delightful apéro, where connections were further strengthened.

ANNUAL REPORT 2022

News release to the Annual Report 2022

 

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