Women for Chocolate

Seattle, USA A collaboration among Seattle Chocolate Company, Specialty Cocoa & Chocolate
Associates, African Cocoa Marketplace, Three Mountains Cocoa, and Rikolto Ghana has brought a
new level of support for women cocoa farmers across Ghana. Seattle Chocolate’s “women-powered”
ethos and support for women and girls locally and globally was the driving force behind the
collaboration, whose successful first phase has now led to a second round of impact investment.

In the start-up phase, Specialty Cocoa & Chocolate Associates worked with Seattle Chocolate to
strategize Seattle Chocolate’s first impact investment in West Africa. With increased access to water
as well as improved planting materials identified as top priorities, African Cocoa Marketplace then
led on project implementation with Cocoa Mmaa and Three Mountains Cocoa cooperatives.

In March 2024, Seattle Chocolate Owner & CEO Jean Thompson and Brand Manager Ellie Thompson
visited Ghana to see the results of these impact investments in the Three Mountains community of
Takyikrom in Ashanti region: a refurbished borehole, a new borehole, and a new seedling nursery.
(Subsequent to their visit, a new borehole was also completed in Cocoa Mmaa’s Teacherkrom
community in Central Region, bringing the project impact to even more women farmers.)

Jean Thompson said, “It was a long journey from Seattle to the Three Mountains Cocoa cooperative
and it enabled us to better understand the challenges farmers face operating in such remote
locations. It was an honor to be there with the entire community to christen the new well and
seedling nursery. Being there and speaking with the farmers, we could really feel the immense
impact these investments will make in their lives every day. It was so gratifying to use some of the
profits from the sale of chocolate in the USA to help the hard working farmers in Ghana.”

Three Mountains Cocoa Founder Leslie Agyare said, “Hosting chocolate makers from Seattle here in
Ghana, we were able to share the firsthand realities of cocoa cultivation and the challenges farmers
face. The community's appreciation for the new borehole and seedling nursery with ceremony and
song, showcased the positive reciprocal impact of these investments.”

For the second phase, Seattle Chocolate is co-funding an innovative capacity-building partnership
with Rikolto Ghana. This phase builds upon Rikolto’s ongoing cocoa program in Ghana, which is
supported by the Belgian Directorate-General for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid
(DGD). Women for Chocolate will be carried out in collaboration with Three Mountains Cocoa and
their farmer groups. A special emphasis will be placed on assisting widows and other financially
disadvantaged people with skills to help them prosper.

Rikolto Ghana brings extensive experience in Ghana’s cocoa sector to the next phase of impact
investment. An important project outcome will be to set up Village Savings and Loans Associations
(VSLAs) in Three Mountains communities. As farmers earn the bulk of their cocoa income in just 3-4
months during the main harvest, lack of cash flow can be a serious problem during the rest of the
year, making it very challenging to meet basic needs or provide for emergencies. VSLAs provide
crucial savings and loan support to see farmers through the difficult off-harvest periods.
Rikolto will also undertake holistic programs to empower women and youth, including the Three
Mountains Widows Group, providing training on alternative income-generating activities and specific
coaching on nutrition.

Rikolto will also train Three Mountains farmers on regenerative agriculture to promote improved soil
health and carbon capture on farms. This work will build upon the strong foundation in organic
agriculture for cocoa and local food crops that Three Mountains has undertaken in its supplier
communities since 2020.

Marshall Anala of Rikolto Ghana said, “We collaborate with smallholder farmers, as well as women
and youth, to ensure improved and sustainable lives through a food system approach to living
income interventions that secure affordable, quality food for all.”

This article was originally published by the Seattle Chocolate. You can read the Press Release here (Women for Chocolate Partnership Press Release232).

Check out their informations YouTube Short here.