Cameroon Introduces Digital Platform to Strengthen Cocoa Traceability and Meet EU Standards

Cameroon has announced the launch of a digital platform aimed at enhancing cocoa traceability, a move designed to bolster the country's cocoa sector amid rising global demands for sustainable and transparent sourcing.

The platform, developed by the Cocoa and Coffee Interprofessional Council (CICC), will provide georeferencing data for cocoa plantations, enabling precise tracking of cocoa beans from farm to export.

The initiative, formalized through an agreement signed on August 28, has garnered support from key industry stakeholders, including Atlantic Cocoa Corporation, Neo Industries, Ofi Cam, Sic Cacaos, Telcar Cocoa, and the Cocoa and Coffee Subsectors Development Fund. This collaboration underscores the growing need for increased traceability to meet stringent international regulations, particularly those set by the European Union.

Apollinaire Ngwe, Executive President of the CICC, highlighted the platform's importance for the industry. "This marks a significant step forward in technological integration and inter-professional collaboration," Ngwe stated. "The system will provide operators with immediate access to precise and up-to-date data, facilitating more efficient supply chain management."

The platform's georeferencing technology assigns unique geographical coordinates to each cocoa plantation, enabling detailed tracking of farm locations, productivity, and sales. Exporters will have immediate access to data that links cocoa beans directly to the farms where they were produced, ensuring full traceability across the supply chain.

This move is in response to upcoming EU regulations that will ban the import of goods produced on deforested or degraded land. The platform is expected to play a key role in preserving Cameroon’s access to European markets, which accounted for 65% of the country's cocoa exports in 2020, according to the EU's sustainable cocoa program.

As one of Africa's top cocoa producers, Cameroon ranks among the world's top six cocoa-producing countries, with an annual output exceeding 290,000 tons. The new digital platform is set to enhance the global competitiveness of Cameroon's cocoa sector, ensuring compliance with international standards and supporting sustainable growth in the industry.