Nestlé has introduced the first KitKat crafted using cocoa mass sourced from beans cultivated by farmer families engaged in the company’s income accelerator initiative.
The company aims to connect consumers with the farmers in the program while raising awareness about the sustainability of the cocoa used in its KitKat bars.
Launched in January 2022, the initiative seeks to tackle income disparity among cocoa-farming families and reduce the risk of child labor. Furthermore, it endeavors to champion and implement improved agricultural practices while fostering gender equality.
Families engaged in the program receive assistance in embracing sustainable agricultural practices, participating in agroforestry initiatives, diversifying their sources of income, and facilitating their children’s education.
Nestlé’s income accelerator initiative has already positively affected more than 10,000 families in Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa, and plans to extend its reach to Ghana this year, benefiting a total of 30,000 families. Nestlé foresees that by 2030, the program will yield significant and widespread improvements, reaching approximately 160,000 cocoa-farming families within Nestlé’s global cocoa supply chain.
To achieve this objective, Nestlé has collaborated with diverse partners and suppliers, including the Rainforest Alliance, aiming to revolutionize its global cocoa sourcing methods. The goal is to attain complete traceability and physical segregation of cocoa obtained through its income accelerator program, ensuring the ability to monitor the entire journey of cocoa beans—from their origin to the factory—keeping them physically separate from other cocoa sources.
The cocoa mass from the income accelerator program conforms to stringent traceability standards, guaranteeing ‘mixed identity preserved’ traceability. This ensures that cocoa can be traced and stored separately, meeting high-quality standards.
Furthermore, Nestlé aims to incorporate segregated cocoa butter for all its KitKat chocolate in Europe by mid-2024, with intentions to extend this practice to other regions in the coming years.
Corinne Gabler, head of confectionery and ice cream for Nestlé, said, “KitKat has consistently embraced innovation, centred around its iconic ‘Have a break, Have a KitKat.’ Today, this innovation is brought to life through the Breaks for Good initiative that puts cocoa farmers at the centre of our product through our income accelerator programme. We couldn’t think of a better brand than KitKat to represent our efforts to create a meaningful impact in cocoa communities.”
Thierry Touchais, manager of strategic accounts for the Rainforest Alliance, commented, “We’re delighted to collaborate with Nestlé on their journey towards more sustainable cocoa sourcing. It’s encouraging to find a company of this scale using a ‘mixed identity preserved’ model in which cocoa can be traced back to Rainforest Alliance-certified farmers engaged in Nestlé’s income accelerator. The approach showcases the potential for positive change in the industry.”
The KitKat Breaks for Good are now accessible at retailers in 27 European countries, and they are set to debut in the UK in May. Moreover, a limited-edition KitKat featuring 70% dark chocolate, sourced from the income accelerator, has been introduced in the UK market as a pilot.
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