Our cocoa bean origins

Ghana is the world’s second-largest cocoa producer, producing roughly  11% of the world’s harvest. Cocoa from Ghana is known for its high quality, due to its higher fat content and low breakage rate. In order to maintain this, Ghana carries out comprehensive and stringent quality controls. Most of the cocoa is produced by small farmers cultivating areas of just two to three hectares.

Ghana is Lindt & Sprüngli's major cocoa bean origin and therefore also the first country in which our Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program was established in 2008. 360 field staff support more than 61,050 farmers in the program.

Ecuador is the world’s largest and most important producer of fine-flavor cocoa and is responsible for two-thirds of global fine-flavor cocoa production.

Ecuador is our major fine flavor cocoa supplier and has been part of the Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program since 2014. More than 6,850 farmers and 44 field staff are part of the program.

Madagascar is a fine flavor cocoa producer whose cocoa is distinguished by a particularly wide variety of flavors and is considered to be of very high quality. Cultivation is concentrated in the northwest of the country and is mostly grown according to organic criteria.

The Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program was established in Madagascar in 2015. More than 2,500 cocoa farmers are involved in the program, supported by 22 field staff.

Papua New Guinea is one of the world’s youngest producers of fine flavor cocoa. On the second largest island in the world, over 85% of the population live in rural areas and are largely dependent on small-scale agriculture. After coffee and fresh food, cocoa is the country’s third most important source of village agriculture income.

Papua New Guinea joined the Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program in 2017. More than 4,750 farmers are involved in the program and is being implemented by 22 field staff.

Alongside the cultivation of coffee, cocoa cultivation is the major source of income for farmers in the Dominican Republic. The island state’s cocoa production is characterized by high-quality fine flavor cocoa beans with a fruity acidic taste, most of which are grown organically in agroforestry systems.

Cooperation with our implementation partner in the Dominican Republic began in 2018. The Farming Program currently covers more than 950 farmers who are supported by ten field staff.

Peru is the second largest producer of fine flavor cocoa in the world. Peruvian cocoa mainly grows in the regions between the Andes and the Amazonas rainforest. The different natural cultivation regions are one of the things that sets it apart from all others. Because it grows in such diverse areas, the plant encounters many species, soils and climates. This results in an unparalleled spectrum of unique flavor and high quality.

Peru has been part of the Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program since the beginning of 2021. More than 1,200 farmers are part of the program, supported by eleven field staff.

Côte d'Ivoire, also known as Ivory Coast, is the world's largest producer of cocoa. Together, Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire are responsible for half of global cocoa production.

Cocoa in Côte d'Ivoire is mainly cultivated by small farmers on 1-3 hectares of land. With Côte d'Ivoire, Lindt & Sprüngli extended the Farming Program in 2021 to cocoa butter, which is sourced from the West African country. The program includes more than 40,500 farmers and 300 field staff.