Speaking after the firm celebrated the second anniversary of the launch of its Fairtrade four-finger Kit Kats in York last week, a spokesman said the company first plans to produce all bars in the range with Fairtrade cocoa. Nestlé makes about 300M four finger Kit Kat bars each year.
Next, the firm intends to make other confectionery brands with Fairtrade cocoa, a spokesman told FoodManufacture.co.uk.
To mark the second anniversary, Nestlé invited two of its Fairtrade cocoa farmer suppliers from Cote d’Ivoire to tour its York plant. The farmers from the Kavokiva Co-operative produce much of the 10,000t of Fairtrade cocoa beans used by the firm.
The photograph of one of its guests, Kouame Fasseri, has appeared on more than 600M Fairtrade-certified Kit Kats since 2010.
Connect farmers
Harriet Lamb, executive director of Fairtrade Foundation UK, said: “Fairtrade seeks to connect farmers and workers who grow our food with the public who enjoy those goods. So it’s great marking the second anniversary of Kit Kat four-finger bars becoming Fairtrade.”
Nestlé pledged to complete the building of a school in the village associated with the co-op as a way of saying thank you to its suppliers.
The school project is part of Nestlé’s Cocoa Plan – an initiative to invest more than £65M in local communities to improve farming, economic, social and environmental conditions.
Commemorative appeal
Meanwhile, Nestlé has also made a three-kilogram Kit Kat bar for a charity tombola in aid of the City of York Commemorative Appeal.
Although the chocolate bar was not Fairtrade, Nestlé also donated 96 normal-sized Fairtrade Kit Kats as prizes.
The City of York Commemorative Appeal aims to raise money to fund a new permanent monument in the city centre. The monument is intended to highlight the achievement of British army regiments associated with York that fought in Afghanistan and to honour those who died in the conflict.
Meanwhile, MEPs are urging the European Commission to legislate against the use of child labour in cocoa plantations.
Chris Hogg, Nestlé deputy head of corporate media relations, told our sister publication BakeryAndSnacks.com: “Nestlé believes child labour has no place in our supply chain and we are firmly committed to actions to eradicate unacceptable practices in line with our commitments in the Nestlé Corporate Business Principles and the Nestlé Supplier Code.”