The International Cocoa Council and subsidiary bodies, including the Consultative Board on the World Cocoa Economy, as well as the Economics and Administration and Finance Committees, will meet at the Holiday Inn Hotel, Wembley, London, UK,  26 – 30 September 2016.

The one-day Cocoa Market Outlook Conference 2016 will take place on Tuesday 27 September at the same venue.

Provisional Timetable of Meetings, 26 – 30 September 2016, Wembley, London, UK

ED(MEM) 1007-Rev.1
English	French	Spanish	Russian

International Cocoa Council: Draft Agenda

ICC-94-1-Rev.1
English	French	Spanish	Russian

Administration and Finance Committee: Draft Agenda

AF-10-1-Rev.1
EnglishFrench		Spanish	Russian

Economics Committee: Draft Agenda

EC-8-1
English	French	Spanish	Russian

Consultative Board on the World Cocoa Economy: Draft Agenda

CB-33-1-Rev.1
English	French	Spanish	Russian

Cocoa Market Outlook Conference 2016, 27 September 2016

ED(MEM) 1008
English	French	Spanish	Russian

The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela on 27 June 2016 acceded to the International Cocoa Agreement 2010, the United Nations Treaty Section has confirmed.

Click here to see the official notification of accession to the Agreement from the United Nations.

Pictured (left): H.E. Mr. Rafael Darío Ramírez Carreño, Ambassador Extraordinary And Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela

Bávaro, The Dominican Republic, 27 May 2016 —About 1,300 participants from 64 cocoa exporting and importing countries in late May converged on the Dominican Republic resort town of Bávaro for the largest cocoa and chocolate meeting ever held in Latin America.

At the kind invitation of the Government of the Dominican Republic, the ICCO’s Third World Cocoa Conference brought together farmers, cocoa processors, chocolate manufacturers, NGOs and donor agencies, government representatives and supporting industry people for discussions of all of the most important issues affecting the world’s cocoa sector, as well as networking and social events showing off Dominican culture.

The participants were joined by a number of distinguished guests, including H.E. the Minister of Agriculture of the Dominican Republic, Mr. Ángel Estévez Bourdierd, H.E. the Minister of Commerce of Côte d’Ivoire, Mr. Jean-Louis Billon, H.E. the Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation of Peru, Mr. Juan Manuel Benites Ramos, H.E. the Minister of Trade and Consumption of Madagascar, Mr Armand Tafazy, H.E. the Minister of Agriculture of Venezuela, Mr. Wilmar Castro Soteldo, and H.E. the Vice Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Aquaculture of Ecuador, Mr. Luis K Valverde. Also joining the proceedings, representing German Agriculture Minister H.E. Mr. Christian Schmidt, was the Head of the International Trade Policy Division of the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Mrs. Cornelia Berns.

The subjects discussed at the Conference ranged from the latest production practices for cocoa to the current situation in the world’s chocolate market, and included in-depth coverage of developments aimed at creating a sustainable cocoa sector for all stakeholders. About 140 speakers brought their expertise from every part of the world and every field of cocoa. (You can download most of the presentations from the Conference below).

The bi-annual Conference introduced a number of new features for its third edition, including a successful Cocoa Producers’ Forum, which brought together close to 200 farmers from origins all over the globe; a well attended seminar on understanding and using the cocoa futures market from an established expert in the field; a lively all-female evening launching the Women in Cocoa and Chocolate (WINCC) network; and a packed Fine and Flavour Cocoa Forum highlighting the best differentiated cocoas and the world’s finest chocolate products.

A Gala Dinner for the participants also included presentations of the ICCO awards to deserving individuals and organizations for their outstanding contributions in four different areas of the cocoa sector. The winners were Dr. Martin Gilmour of Mars Global Chocolate, recognized for his work promoting cocoa research; the NGO Solidaridadfor raising awareness of the role of women in the cocoa and chocolate sector; well known fine cocoa expert Mr. Edward Seguine for his tireless work dedicated  to promoting Fine and Flavour Cocoa; and Dominican Republic cooperative CONACADOfor its successful and world renowned support of its member farmers. The ICCO also gave special thanks and presented souvenir gifts to its Dominican Republic organizing partners, the Comisión Nacional del Cacao.

The Conference concluded with the presentation and adoption of the Bávaro Cocoa Declaration, a document reviewing progress on the ICCO’s Global Cocoa Agenda, which outlines ambitious plans for the development of the cocoa sector during the next two years up to the 2018 edition of the Conference.

At the closing session of the Bávaro Conference, ICCO Executive Director Dr. Jean-Marc Anga announced that the next World Cocoa Conference would take place in March 2018 in Berlin, by kind invitation of the Federal Government of Germany.

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PROGRAMME OF THE WORLD COCOA CONFERENCE BAVARO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 2016
22–25 May 2016, Barcelo Bavaro Convention Center, Bavaro, Dominican Republic

To download available presentations, click on the highlighted presenter names below

SUNDAY 22 May 2016

8:00 Registration open

Cocoa Producers’ Forum

This event was organized by the ICCO prior to the opening of the World Cocoa Conference to encourage consultation and experience sharing as well as facilitate harmonization of positions of cocoa producers from all regions. It was a free-of-charge event restricted to farmers participating at the World Cocoa Conference.

Moderator: Mr. Aly Toure, Permanent Representative of Côte d’Ivoire to International Commodity Bodies & Spokesman for Cocoa Exporting Countries at the ICCO

09:00 Opening and Welcome remarks

Welcome address by Dr Jean-Marc Anga, Executive Director, International Cocoa Organization (ICCO)

Opening remarks by Mr Aly Toure, Permanent Representative of Côte d’Ivoire to International Commodity Bodies; and Spokesman for Cocoa Exporting Member Countries of the ICCO

Opening remarks by Mr. Isidoro de la Rosa, President, CONACADO, Dominican Republic

09:30 Panel 1:      Progress and future of cocoa growing: regional experiences

Panel Members:

• Mr. Konan Toussaint NGuessan, President, The World cocoa Producers Organization, Côte d’Ivoire
• Dr. Haya Ramba, Director of Biology Division, Malaysia Cocoa Board, Malaysia
• Mr. Abel Fernandez, Commercial Manager, Grupo Conacado, The Dominican Republic
• Ing. Freddy Benito Cabello Luna, President, Cooperative UNOCACE, Ecuador

12:00 Lunch break

 

14:00 Panel 2: Strengthening the voice of cocoa farmers, on the national and global stages

Panel Members:

•  Mr. Abraham Adusei, Cocoa Farmer, Ghana
•  Mr. Sayina Riman, President, Cocoa Association of Nigeria (CAN), Nigeria
•  Mr. Rafael Gonzalez, President, APROCACI, The Dominican Republic
•  Mr. Luis Alberto Mendoza Aguilar, President, APP Cacao, Peru
• Mrs Maria Woo, Vice President, CACAONICA, Nicaragua
•  Mrs Solange N’Guessan Kouamé, Union of Agricultural Cooperative of San Pedro, Côte d’Ivoire

Panel discussions and Q&A session

16:00   Conclusions and recommendations

16:30   End of day’s session

• Dr. José-Antonio Martinez Rojas, Member, Comisión Nacional del Cacao, Dominican Republic
• Dr. Jean-Marc Anga, Executive Director, ICCO

18.00 Exhibition and Registration Desk closes

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MONDAY, 23 May 2016

PLENARY SESSIONS

08:00          Registration open 

Official Opening Ceremony and Welcome Speeches

09:30          Welcoming Remarks

•  Welcome Address on behalf of the host Government by H.E. Dr. Federico Alberto Cuello Camilo, Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to the United Kingdom
• Welcome Address by Dr. Jean-Marc Anga, Executive Director, International Cocoa Organization (ICCO)
• Address by Mrs. Cornelia Berns, Head of Division International Trade Policy, Federal Ministry for Food and Agriculture, Germany, on behalf of H.E. Mr. Christian Schmidt, the Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture, Germany
• Address by H.E. Mr. Luis K Valverde, Vice Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Aquaculture, Ecuador
• Address by HE Mr. Jean-Louis Billon, Minister of Commerce, Côte d’Ivoire
• Address by H.E. Ing. Agró. Ángel Estévez Bourdierd, Minister of Agriculture, The Dominican Republic

11:00          Keynote Presentation by Dr. Jean-Marc Anga, Executive Director, International Cocoa Organization (ICCO)

11:30          Press Conference / photo opportunity

12:00          Lunch

14:00          Address by Mr. Héctor José Rizek, Director, Comisión Nacional del Cacao, the Dominican Republic

Presentation by Mr. Vladimir Hernández del Orbe, Exports Supply Manager, CEI-RD, the Dominican Republic

14:30          Road to Sustainability: Progress by Cocoa Producing Countries on their National Cocoa Strategies (panel 1)

Moderator: Mr. Alex Bruijnis, Senior Policy Advisor, Ministry of Economic Affairs, The Netherlands – EU Chair of the Commodities Working Party – Chairman, International Cocoa Council (ICCO)

Addresses by Dr. José-Antonio Martínez Rojas, Member, Comisión Nacional del Cacao and by Mr. Rafael Yonny Molina Soto, Program Manager, Comisión Nacional del Cacao, the Dominican Republic

Presentation by Mr. Yusuf Daya, Senior Manager, Projects and Export Development Finance, Afreximbank

Panellists:

• H.E. Mr. Luis K Valverde, Vice Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Aquaculture, Ecuador
• Mrs. Massandjé Touré-Litsé, Director General, Conseil Café Cacao, Côte d’Ivoire
• Dr. Francis Baah, Executive Director, Cocoa Health and Extension Division, Ghana Cocoa Board, Ghana
• Mr. Miguel Obando, Deputy Secretary, Nicaraguan Institute for Agricultural and Livestock Technology (INTA), Nicaragua

15:45          Cocoa Break

16:00               Road to Sustainability: Experience from cocoa farmers (panel 2)

Moderator: Ms. Cathy Pieters, Director, Cocoa Life Program, Mondelēz International

Keynote presentation by Mr. Toussaint N’Guessan, President, World Cocoa Producers’ Organization (WCPO/OMCC)

Panellists:

• Mr. Isidoro de la Rosa, President, CONACADO, Dominican Republic
• Ing. Freddy Benito Cabello Luna, UNOCACE, Ecuador
• Ms. Ouokanoua Victorine Kouaglou, Cooperative KOADO-DUE, Côte d’Ivoire
• Mrs. Leticia Ama-Kowoa Yankey, Cocoa Farmer, Ghana

17:00               Road to Sustainability: Initiatives by the industry

Scaling Impact through Alignment and Partnerships  (panel 3)

Moderator: Mr. Omer Gatien Maledy, Executive Secretary, Interprofessional Cocoa and Coffee Council (CICC), Cameroon

Keynote presentation by Mr. Barry Parkin, Chairman, World Cocoa Foundation (WCF)

Panellists:

• Mr. Nicko Debenham, VP Global Cocoa Sustainability & MD Biolands Group, Barry Callebaut
• Mr. Taco Terheijden, Director Cocoa Sustainability, Cargill
• Mr. Simon Brayn-Smith, Director of Cocoa Sustainability, Olam International
• Ms Cathy Pieters, Director, Cocoa Life Program, Mondelēz International

18:15               End of day’s session

 

The “Women in Cocoa & Chocolate” (WINCC) Network event

18:30 – 20:30, Santo Domingo Room, Bávaro Convention Center

Food and chocolate journalist Simran Sethi led a lively discussion with Massandjé Touré-Litsé, Cathy Pieters and Maricel Presilla about their love for chocolate and the cocoa and chocolate community. This side event is organized by the ICCO and Solidaridad, to introduce women to their peers in the sector, to let them be better connected and strengthen their networks but also to enjoy chocolate and wine, whilst being a part of the launch of WINCC. The event was open to all registered female participants at the World Cocoa Conference!

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TUESDAY, 24 May 2016

BREAKOUT SESSIONS

Track 1       The Future of Production

A transformational agenda for cocoa production

Moderator: Dr. Martin Gilmour, Cocoa Sustainability R&D Director, Mars Global Chocolate

08:30               Moderator’s introduction

09:00               Mapping cropping systems and farming practices (panel 4)

Presentation by Dr. Philippe Bastide, Advisor for Cocoa Matters, CIRAD

Panellists:

• Mr. Manfred Borer, Programme Director, Swiss Foundation for Technical Cooperation (Swisscontact)
• Professor Paul Hadley, Director, Centre for Horticulture, School of Agriculture, Policy and Development, University of Reading
• Dr. Verina Ingram, Assistant Professor, Wageningen UR
• Mr. Claro Blacio, General Manager, International Agribusiness Consulting, Ecuador

10:15               Cocoa Break

10:30               Improved planting material for superior flavour and yields  (panel 5)

Presentation by Ms. Brigitte Laliberté, Scientist, Bioversity International

Panellists:

• Dr. Wilbert Phillips-Mora, Head, Cacao Genetic Improvement Program, CATIE
• Mr. Haya Ramba, Director of Biology Division, Malaysian Cocoa Board

11:30               Controlling Pests and diseases: the main threat to the expansion of the cocoa sector  (panel 6)

The STDF film on the cocoa value chain & SPS requirements, Cocoa: A Sweet Value Chain, presented at the Conference, can be viewed by clicking here

With introduction by Mr. Pablo Jenkins, Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF), World Trade Organization (WTO)

Presentation by Dr. Klaus Gehmann, Technical Excellence Lead Africa & Middle-East, Syngenta Crop Protection AG

Panellists:

• Dr. Jayne Crozier, Trade and Commodities Coordinator, CABI
• Dr. H. K. Dzahini-Obiatey, Chief Research Scientist, Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana (CRIG), Ghana
• Mr. Tony Lass MBE, Chairman, Cocoa Research Association Ltd. (CRA Ltd.)

13:00               Lunch

14:30               Assessing soil fertility and improving fertilization  (panel 7)

Presentation by Mr. Rolando Ureña Aguilar, Commercial and Technical Manager Emerging Markets, Crop Nutrition, Yara

Panellists:

• Dr. François Ruf, Economist, CIRAD
• Mr. Jonas Mva Mva, Director Sustainable Development, Chocolat Cémoi
• Mr. Mathias Massande, Cooperative Mokabo, Gabon

15:30               Ground-breaking innovations in cocoa farming (panel 8)

Presentation by Mr. Angelo Calmon de Sá, Agricola Cantagalo, Brazil

Presentation by Mr. Andres Guzman, Executive Director, Hacienda Victoria, Ecuador

Panellists:

• Mr. Tony Lass MBE, Chairman, Cocoa Research Association Ltd. (CRA Ltd.) on behalf of Dr Barry Kitchen, Chairman and Director, Daintree Estates Cocoa, Australia
• Mr. Jose Jarrin, Country Manager, Netafim Ecuador S.A.

16:30               Cocoa Break and End of day’s session

Moderator: Ms Judith Ganes, President, J. Ganes Consulting, LLC

08:30               Moderator’s introduction

09:00               Outlook for cocoa supply around the world  (panel 9)

General overview by Mr. Laurent Pipitone, Director of the Economics and Statistics Division, ICCO

Africa production: reinforcing its dominant position

Presentation by Ms. Pamela Thornton, Armajaro Asset Management LLP

Asia production: can we still be optimistic?

Presentation by Mr. Frédéric Wenger, Head of Research, Cocoa, Olam International

Latin America and Caribbean production: how far can they go?

Presentation by Mr. Douglas Hawkins, Managing Director, Hardman Agribusiness

Panel session with all speakers

11:00               Cocoa Break

 

11:15              Competition, structure and pricing in the cocoa and chocolate sector  (panel 10)

Presentation by Mr. Job Leuning, Sourcing Director, Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate

Presentation by Mr. Gary Guittard, CEO & President, Guittard Chocolate Company

Panellists:

• Mr. Michiel Hendriksz, Executive Director, FarmStrong Foundation
• Mr José Tomas Cedeño Cedeño, cooperative UNPROCAFA, Ecuador

12:30               Lunch

 

14:30               An introduction to Cocoa Futures Markets (Seminar)  (panel 11)

General introduction by Ms. Judith Ganes, President, J. Ganes Consulting, LLC

A seminar conducted by Mr. Albert Scalla, Senior Vice President, INTL FCStone Inc.

Cocoa futures markets play an important role in the functioning of the world cocoa economy, by facilitating price risk shifting (hedging) and acting as a centre for the collection and dissemination of information on world cocoa bean prices. This seminar provided participants with basic economic or financial knowledge, with a better understanding of the role and functioning of cocoa futures markets. The seminar was open to all Conference participants.

16:30               Cocoa Break and End of day’s session

 

Moderator: Mr. Edmond Konan, CEO of GBCC and Chair of the CEN/ISO 415 Management Working Group

08:30               Moderator’s introduction

 

09:00               Can cocoa really provide a living income for smallholder growers?  (panel 12)

Presentation by: Mr. Antonie Fountain, Managing Director, VOICE Network

Panellists:

• Hon. Abraham Adusei, Award-winning cocoa farmer, Ghana
• Mr. Sona Ebai, Chief of Party -African Cocoa Initiative, WCF
• Mr. Victor Ganoza, Country Director, Technoserve, Peru
• Dr. Anna Laven, Senior Advisor, Royal Tropical Institute (KIT)

10:00               Cocoa Break

 

10:15              Public-Private-Partnership platforms: how farmers benefit  (panel 13)

Presentation by Mr. Andrew Bovarnick, Global Head Green Commodities Programme & Lead Natural Resource Economist, UNDP

Panellists:

• Mr. Edouard Kouassi N’Guessan, Deputy Director General, Production Sustainability and Technical Operations, Conseil Café-Cacao, Côte d’Ivoire
• Ing. Juan A. Cuello Ortiz, Executive Secretary, Comisión Nacional del Cacao, Dominican Republic
• Mr. Sayina Riman, President, Cocoa Association of Nigeria (CAN)
• Mr. Evans Tagbor, President of Akuafo Anigye Young Cocoa Farmers Association, Ghana

11:15               Child labour: upscaling on successful experiences  (panel 14)

Moderator: Mr. Andrew Bovarnick, Global Head Green Commodities Programme & Lead Natural Resource Economist, UNDP

Presentation by Mr. Nick Weatherill, Executive Director, International Cocoa Initiative

Panellists:

• Mr. Emmanuel A Opoku, Deputy Director, Research (M&E), Ghana Cocoa Board, Ghana
• Mr. Amani Konan, National Consultant, Office of the First Lady of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire
• Ms Aarti Kapoor, Managing Director, Embode

12:30               Lunch

Moderator: Mr. Antonie Fountain, Managing Director, VOICE Network

14:30               Raising women’s voice and attracting the young generation  (panel 15)

Presentation by Ms Marina Korchynsky Morari, General Manager Community Development, Cocoa Sustainability, Barry Callebaut Sourcing AG

Panellists:

• Ms. Noemi Crisostomo, Vice-President, Chocolate de la Cuenca de Altamira (CHOCAL), the Dominican Republic
• Mr. Fred Frimpong, Programme Manager “MASO” Ghana, Solidaridad
• Ms. Solange N’Guessan Kouame, Executive Director, Union of Agricultural Cooperatives
• Ms. Elvira Ac Macz, Community Cloudforest Conservation, Guatemala

15:30               Adapting to climate change and benefiting from environmental schemes    (panel 16)

Presentation by Mr. Christian Bunn, Researcher, International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)

Panellists:

• Mr. Cedric van Cutsem, Cocoa Life Operations Manager, Mondelēz International
• Mr. Jeffrey Hayward, Vice President, Design and Innovation, Global Climate Lead, Rainforest Alliance
• Mr. Joseph Larrose, Director, Sustainable Sourcing Department, Touton
• Ms Amelia Quispe Macarco, Cooperative APECMU, Peru

16:30               Cocoa Break and End of day’s session

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WEDNESDAY, 25 May 2016

BREAKOUT SESSIONS

 

Moderator: Mr. Conradin Rasi, Deputy Head of the Economic, Finance, Science and Innovation Section, Embassy of Switzerland, London

08:30               Moderator’s introduction

 

09:00               The production of fine / flavour and organic cocoa   (panel 17)

Presentation by Mr. Federico Vignati, Principal Executive, Department of Environment and Climate Change, Development Bank for Latin America (CAF)

Presentation by Mr. Jose Iturrios Padilla, Director, Peru Cocoa Alliance

Panellists:

• Mr. Vernon Barrett, Director, The Caribbean Fine Cocoa Forum
• Mr. Martin Christy, Chair of Direct Cacao, and Founder of Seventy%
• Mr. Jorge Redmond, President/CEO, Chocolate El Rey

10:30               Cocoa Break

 

11:00               Improving market access and promoting quality and origin-identified cocoas  (panel 18)

Presentation by Mr. Edward S. Seguine, Guittard Chocolate / Seguine Cacao

Panellists:

• Dr. Darin Sukha, Research Fellow/Food Technologist, Cocoa Research Centre, The University of the West Indies, Trinidad & Tobago
• Mr. Escipion Oliveira, Deputy Executive Director, the Caribbean Export Development Agency
• Mr. Pierre Costet, Taste Master, Valrhona

12:30               Lunch

 

Moderator: Ms. Simran Sethi, Author of “Bread, Wine, Chocolate: The Slow Loss of Foods we Love”

08:30               Moderator’s introduction

 

09:00               Stimulating innovation in cocoa post-harvesting methods for quality chocolate   (panel 19)

Official launch of the CAOBISCO/ECA/FCC publication “Cocoa Beans: Cocoa & Chocolate Industry Quality Requirements” publication, which can be downloaded by clicking here 

By Dr. Martin Gilmour, Cocoa Sustainability R&D Director, Mars Global Chocolate; Ms. Sabine Nafziger, Secretary General, Caobisco and Ms. Catherine Entzminger, General Secretary, European Cocoa Association

Presentation by Ms. Naailah Aminah Ali, Contract Officer, Food Technology Section, Cocoa Research Centre, The University of the West Indies, Trinidad & Tobago

Presentation by Mr. Gricha Safarian, Managing Director, Puratos Grand-Place and Ms. Marie-Amélie Ormières, Cocoa Sourcing and Sustainability Manager, Puratos Group

Panellists:

• Ms. Hilary Barry, Training Unit Coordinator, EDES COLEACP
• Mr. Uliser Reyes Valdez, Cooperativa la Campesina R.L., Nicaragua

10:30              Cocoa Break

 

11:00               The future of chocolate in a challenging economic environment    (panel 20)

Presentation by Mr. Jack Skelly, Food Analyst, Euromonitor International

Panellists:

• Dr. Torben Erbrath, Director, BDSI, Germany
• Mr. Eduardo A. Cortés Shehab, Vice President of Operations, Cortés Hermanos & Co.
• Ms. Amy Guittard, Director of Marketing, Guittard Chocolate Company

12:30               Lunch

 

Moderator: Mr. Daniele Giovannucci, President of the Committee on Sustainability Assessment (COSA)

08:30               Moderator’s introduction: Three Key Sustainability Trends You Should Know About: Directions in the Future of Cocoa

 

09:00               Sustainability: How the Roles of Certification and Standards are Now Evolving  (panel 21)

Presentation by Mr. Han Loke Fong, Senior Economist, ICCO

Panellists:

• Mr. Jack Steijn, Chair, CEN/ISO committees on sustainable and traceable cocoa
• Mr. Matthew Lynch, Consultant, IISD Sustainable Markets and Responsible Trade Program
• Mr. Han de Groot, Executive Director, UTZ
• Mr. Abel Fernandez, Commercial Manager, Grupo Conacado, The Dominican Republic

10:15               Cocoa Break

 

10:30               Key Performance Indicators: Measuring Progress Towards Sustainability and Implementing the Global Cocoa Agenda    (panel 22)

Presentation by Mr. Lucas Simons, Founder & CEO, Newforesight

Panellists:

• Mr. Assamoi Robert Yapo, Director for sustainability, partnerships and Projects, Conseil Café Cacao, Côte d’Ivoire
• Ms. Jennifer Golden, Monitoring & Evaluation Team Manager, WCF
• Mr. Christian Robin, Programme Manager, State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), Switzerland
• Mr. Jean-Marie Delon, Cocoa Sustainability Lead, Côte d’Ivoire, Cargill

11:45              Sustainability Fund:  A Feasible Mechanism to benefit Farmers?  (panel 23)

Presentation by Mr. Friedel Hütz-Adams, Senior Researcher, Südwind e.V

Panellists:

• Ms. Sabine Nafziger, Secretary General, Caobisco
• Mr. Dick de Graff, Coordinator, Cocoa Steering Committee, EFFAT
• Mr. Sona Ebai, Chief of Party -African Cocoa Initiative, WCF

13:00               Lunch

 

PLENARY SESSIONS

Moderator: Dr. Jean-Marc Anga, Executive Director, International Cocoa Organization

14:30               Co-ordinating Efforts and Measuring Progress    (panel 24)

Panellists:

• Mr. Alex Bruijnis, Senior Policy Advisor, Ministry of Economic Affairs, The Netherlands – EU Chair of the Commodities Working Party – Chairman, International Cocoa Council (ICCO)
• Dr. Martin Gilmour, Cocoa Sustainability R&D Director, Mars Global Chocolate & Chair of the WCC3 Technical Committee
• Mr. Tim McCoy, Acting President, WCF
• Mr. Aly Toure, Permanent Representative of Côte d’Ivoire to International Commodity Bodies & Spokesman for Cocoa Exporting Countries at the ICCO
• Mr. Antonie Fountain, Managing Director, VOICE Network

15:45          Cocoa Break

Conclusion of the Conference and Closing Ceremony

16:15          Remarks by Special Guest, Mr. Viwanou Gnassounou, Assistant Secretary-General, Sustainable Economic Development and Trade, African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP), on behalf of the Secretary-General Dr. Patrick Ignatius Gomes

16:30          Adoption of Recommendations: the Bávaro Cocoa Declaration

17:00          Closing remarks

• Dr. Jean-Marc Anga, Executive Director, ICCO
• Official Announcement of the host country, city and provisional dates for The Fourth World Cocoa Conference in 2018 by Mrs. Cornelia Berns, Head of Division International Trade Policy, Federal Ministry for Food and Agriculture, Germany
• Ing. Juan A. Cuello Ortiz, Executive Secretary, Comisión Nacional del Cacao, Dominican Republic

 

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THURSDAY, 26 May 2016

London, 11 May 2016–About 1,000 participants from 60 countries are expected at the third edition of the World Cocoa Conference, scheduled to take place from Sunday, 22 May to Wednesday 25 May at the Barceló Bávaro Convention Center in Bávaro, Dominican Republic.

The Conference, which will be accompanied by an adjacent Exhibition, will include 24 panel sessions and about 140 moderators, presenters and panellists looking at all of the most important issues in cocoa and chocolate. Included among the many topics will be tracks on the future of cocoa production, advances in markets and trading, and strengthening sustainability in the sector.

To be opened in the presence of His Excellency Mr. Danilo Medina Sánchez, President of the Dominican Republic, the Conference will also include remarks by government ministers from five countries, keynote presentations from some of the largest chocolate manufacturers and cocoa processors in the world, and discussions with some of the top experts in the entire cocoa and chocolate value chain.

Crucial to that value chain are the cocoa farmers, who will be the main focus of a special day-long Producers’ Forum on 22 May, and farmers from all of the world’s major producing countries are already set to take part in all aspects of the Conference.

The increasingly significant role of women in the cocoa industry is also to be highlighted by a special networking function organized with partner NGO Solidaridad on 23 May, and another side event, in conjunction with the organization Direct Cacao, aims to share knowledge and increase business for high quality cocoa and chocolate at a forum dedicated to the highly valued fine and flavour cocoa (on 26 May).

Just announced for Conference attendees is another highlight, an in-depth seminar on the role and functioning of the cocoa futures markets, from an experienced and expert viewpoint.

The wide-ranging event will serve as the gathering place for the whole world’s cocoa and chocolate sector during the final week in May, as the Conference immediately precedes the International Cocoa Council’s meeting of Member countries of the ICCO.

The bi-annual Conference, to be held for the first time in the Western Hemisphere, is taking place with the generous assistance of the Government of the Dominican Republic and the Comisión Nacional del Cacao.

For updated information on the Third World Cocoa Conference, including the latest programme and details of how to attend, please visit the event website www.worldcocoaconference.org.

Regular updates, with news and the latest images from the Conference, will be available on the ICCO’s Twitter channel, using the hashtag #worldcocoaconference16.