Mars Incorporated and Olam Food Ingredients have partnered on a five-year programme (2025–2029) in Ecuador aimed at reducing emissions linked to cocoa cultivation, amid growing corporate focus on decarbonising agricultural supply chains.

The programme aims to promote sustainable and regenerative farming methods within the cocoa production areas with a view to cutting emissions and improving productivity, as part of the companies commitment to net-zero emissions by the year 2050.

In its first stage, the five-year program will seek to cover over 9,000 hectares of farmland and over 960 farmers in major cocoa-producing regions in Ecuador, which include El Oro, Esmeraldas, and Manabí.

The project seeks to transform cocoa production farming methods from monoculture to agroforestry, which involves the integration of other crops and trees alongside the cocoa tree to enhance soil quality, biodiversity, and protection against climate hazards like droughts and pests.

Farming inputs and methods will also be geared towards low-emission strategies like enhanced fertilizer use, crop residue management, and biochar application to reduce emissions while enhancing carbon sequestration within the soils.

The cocoa supply chain represents an important contributor to carbon footprints by food companies, with raw materials constituting a substantial portion of their total carbon footprint. In this regard, farm-level interventions represent a growing focus to help achieve climate goals set by corporations.

The project draws from over a decade-long partnership between the two organizations in Ecuador and more than 15 years of cooperation between them worldwide. It also follows science-based climate targets that have become increasingly common in the food industry.

Besides reducing the amount of greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere, the project aims to increase the efficiency and resilience of the farmers engaged in cocoa farming. The latter is marked by low productivity, price volatility, and increased risks associated with climatic changes that negatively impact the sustainability of supply.

The problem can be addressed through the implementation of diversification of production. Despite the mentioned positive aspect of the initiative, there are challenges associated with its expansion due to financial costs and educational needs, among other aspects.

This decision was taken following increased demands made by international food companies aimed at decreasing emissions not only at their facilities but across the entire supply chain. One of the areas considered most risky in terms of sustainability and emissions reductions is agriculture and food production, which includes such agricultural products as cocoa.

Despite the positive steps undertaken by the company and the large scale of initiatives implemented to achieve this aim, the future will tell whether the company succeeds.