FREQUENTLY ASKED
QUESTIONS

All major companies have invested in their own programs, but these have largely operated in silos. This did not allow for development of consistent standards and led to fragmented coverage, unable to reach farmers and communities at scale. Built independently and in parallel, they have driven meaningful progress in places but have also created duplicated interventions and inconsistent requirements for cocoa farmers.

The structural challenges facing cocoa-farming families cannot be solved company by company. Collective action, done well, can achieve what individual efforts cannot.

We believe that helping to close the living income gap and achieve lasting impact for farmers, their families, and communities at landscape level requires something that no single company can deliver alone: a coordinated, holistic implementation of programs, harmonizing farmer-facing requirements, and shared knowledge across the industry.

TogetherCocoa takes a fundamentally different approach in several ways. Five major companies are coming together for the first time to implement programs jointly. The Foundation has its own independent CEO and management team, based in West Africa, accountable solely to the Foundation’s mission, and which aims to collaborate closely with the government. The approach is holistic by design — addressing the full range of challenges facing farmers, communities, and intermediaries across entire regions, not along individual brand supply chains.

Each founding company will continue to make its own independent choices about its existing programs. The Foundation operates in parallel, not in place of, those efforts and is seen as a mechanism to test and learn over the next three years.

During the current pilot stage, estimated from 2026-2029, the Foundation is operating with its five founding companies to test and learn what actually works. This deliberate, focused start is about building a credible proof of concept.

Once the proof of concept is established and the Foundation members take the decision to expand, participation will open more broadly to players across the industry who share the Foundation’s mission.

Throughout this process, the Foundation remains committed to collaboration beyond its founding membership. An Advisory Board will also bring in civil society organizations and other external partners, ensuring a breadth of perspectives shapes our work from the outset. We are always open to conversations in the meantime. If you are interested in following our progress or exploring future collaboration, please get in touch.