Our Results
Tony's Open Chain tried and test approach proves positive change is possible
Tony's Open Chain helps companies take full responsibility for everything that happens in the cocoa supply chain. We do this through direct intervention. And we can see this approach is working in all key sustainability focus areas: child labour, deforestation and moving farmers towards achieving a living income.
Decent Household Income & Farmer Resilience
Tony's Open Chain cocoa stands out by significantly reducing the living income gap for all cocoa farmers by paying higher cocoa prices and actively improving overall household incomes.
in 2021/22
Average contribution of the Living Income Reference Price (LIRP) to net cocoa income at our longer-term Ivorian partner cooperatives
in 2022/23
Average contribution of the Living Income Reference Price (LIRP) to net cocoa income at our longer-term Ivorian partner cooperatives.
ideal scenario
Farmgate price should be high enough to enable a living income, resulting in 0% additional contribution from LIRP to cocoa-farming household income.
The issue
Smallholder cocoa farmers are underpaid for their cocoa. Because of excessively low cocoa prices, most West African cocoa farmers are not able to earn a living income, which means they often live in poverty. This can ultimately lead to deforestation and illegal labour.
Tony's Open Chain approach to decent household income & farmer resilience
100% of the Tony's Open Chain beans are bought at Living Income Reference Price level, effectively reducing the living income gap for all cocoa farmers by paying higher cocoa prices and actively working to improve overall household incomes. This is only one of the components of a more holistic view on cocoa pricing, as developed by Fairtrade and integrated into Tony's 5 Sourcing Principles to end structural poverty.
Human Rights
Tony's Open Chain cocoa stands out with notably lower child labour prevalence rate and no identified cases of forced labour, which we know thanks to consistent and systematic reporting and collection of detailed insights for our entire supply chain.
industry average
Average child labour prevalence rate in the cocoa industry.
TOC average
Average child labour prevalence rate at partner cooperatives level varies based on the onboarding of new co-ops, but it remains significantly lower than industry average.
longer-term partner co-ops
This demonstrates that the longer Tony's Open Chain collaborates with a partner cooperative, the more we see child labour decline.
The issue
In Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, every other child - one in every two children - in communities where cocoa is grown is engaged in child labour. Summing up to 1.56 million children, with 95% of these children doing hazardous work.
Tony's Open Chain approach to Child Labour
Tony's Open Chain is 100% covered by the Child Labor Monitoring and Remediation System (CLMRS), a tool to combat child labour in cocoa supply chain. As a tool, it ensures social traceability, which is essential for taking full responsability for addressing illegal labour issues in the cocoa supply chain. Tony's Open Chain and its partner cooperatives address child labour with a multifaceted approach that considers the needs of individuals, households and the entire cocoa community. We also go beyond prevention to provoke normative change, by raising awareness on children's rights amongst cocoa communities. This approach promotes social justice, reduces inequalities and builds a brighter future for all in the long term.
Tony's Open Chain approach to Forced Labour
Although we never found a single case of forced labour in the Tony's Open Chain supply chain, measures have been put in place with partner co-ops to address vulnerabilities, and we are taking part into pilot programs to implement new prevention tools and effectively protect the most vulnerable workers in our supply chain.
Forests & Environment
Tony's Open Chain cocoa stands out with notably lower emissions and negligeable deforestation, which we know thanks to a land use change analysis of the past two decades.
in 2022/23
Farms in the TOC supply chain GPS mapped and assessed against protected areas.
TOC sourced cocoa in Ghana
Lower emission than most other cocoa from the same region, when compared to World Food LCA Database.
TOC sourced cocoa in Côte d'Ivoire
Lower emission than most other cocoa from the same region, when compared to World Food LCA Database.
The issue
In Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire - globally the most vital cocoa contributors -, farmers, the land and the ecosystem are all facing the far-reaching impacts of climate change. Formerly dense forests have transformed into cocoa plantations since 2000, aggravating the already prolonged dry seasons and rising cocoa temperatures, and the burden of these changes for cocoa farmers.
Tony's Open Chain approach to Forests & Environment
Tony's Open Chain meticulous approach ensures accurate monitoring and geographical assessment of each cocoa farm in the supply chain. Trained personnel from the partner cooperatives capture data on farm location and size. In 2022/23, all farms were assessed for historic deforestation and current deforestation risk by Satelligence. The collected mapping data is cross-referenced with governmental protected area and forest boundary maps, in accordance with the guidelines set by the Cocoa Forest Initiative. On top of that, by combining 100% farm-level traceability and comprehensive GPS mapping of all farms any current or prospective risk of deforestation is swiftly identified and remediated.