Kuapa Kokoo Cocoa Farmers Coop
| Kuapa Kokoo Union, Cocoa Growers' Co-operative Kuapa Background ----------------------------------------------------------- Kuapa Kokoo Union was founded in 1993 by a group of cocoa farmers and Twin Trading, a UK alternative trading organisation, as a response to the liberalisation of the cocoa market in Ghana. Its mission is to improve the social, economic and political status of its members and protect their business interests from the vagaries of world market forces (see Liberalisation of the Cocoa Industry below.) Kuapa is a national (third-level) co-operative and imbrella organisation for more than 1,000 village-level farmers' societies and regional organisations. Kuapa purchases and markets its members' cocoa beans. It is the only co-operative among 12 private buying companies which have been granted export licenses. This allows Kuapa to buy up to 30% of the cocoa it purchases from members and export it to buyers via the Cocoa Marketing Company Ltd (CMC), a subsidiary of the Ghana Cocoa Board (Cocobod). The remainder has to be sold to CMC for export. From modest beginnings, Kuapa, the only farmer-owned company in Ghana, has rapidly grown into an organisation of national importance. Kuapha Kokoo means 'good cocoa farmer' in Twi, the local language. Kuapa Members -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kuapa represents 48,854 farmers from 1,124 village-level farmer societies, and is continuing to grow. 28% of members are women. Kuapa members produced 63,000 tonnes of cocoa beans in 2004, representing 8% of Ghana's total production of 736,000 tonnes. The average farm size is 1.6 hectares (4 acres) of which 1.2 ha (3 acres) are under cocoa production. The farms are family-run but a few of the larger farms occasionally employ seasonal labour. Cocoa provides virtually 100% of members' cash income. Some farmers grow plantain, cocoyam, cassava and vegetables for home consumption and plaintain, oranges and palm fruits for sale at local markets but the soil quality on most farms is too poor to grow these crops. Social Context -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Members are predominantly poor small-holders living in the most remote and deprived parts of the country. Most of the cocoa growing villages do not have potable water, paved roads, healthcare, motorised transport or electricity and rely on kerosene for artificial light. Most villages lack basic schools with educational materials and teachers but this is being improved with the introduction of the government’s free compulsory basic education policy. Some farmers are able to grow plantain, coco yam, cassava and vegetables for home consumption and plantain, oranges and palm fruits for sale at local markets. But the soil in many cocoa farms is too poor to grow vegetables and other food crops so these must be bought in at extra cost. Apart from basic education, there are no free social services in Ghana so farmers must pay for all services such as healthcare and secondary education. Kuapa and Fairtrade -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kuapa was certified as a Fairtrade producer organisation in 1995. Kuapa receives the Fairtrade minimum price of $1600/tonne for Fairtrade sales, plus the Fairtrade premium of $150/tonne for investment in commercial, social or environmental projects. When the world cocoa price is $1600/tonne or above, Kuapa receives the world price plus $150/tonne premium. If requested by the co-operative, Fairtrade buyers must provide pre-finance of up to 60% of the value of the contract. World prices, set at the New York Exchange, fell to a 27-year low of $714 per tonne in November 2000. They have since rallied, fluctuating during 2002 between $1,280/tonne and a 16-year high of $2,362/tonne. Prices were relatively high at an average of around $1,600 in 2003/04, in part because of market uncertainty caused by the political situation in Côte d’Ivoire, the world’s largest cocoa producer. Nevertheless, in 2003/04, real prices were less than half of what they were in 1970/71 according to the ICCO Annual Report 2003/04. Kuapa’s partnership with Fairtrade is helping develop a strong, democratic institutional framework at all levels of the organisation. With the additional income from Fairtrade sales and premiums, Kuapa has been changing the fortunes of thousands of farmers; projects undertaken by the organisation have helped the farmers, especially the women, empower themselves, build their confidence and independence, and ensure a sense of community participation and ownership. The extra income from Fairtrade sales has been used for: Direct payments to farmers in the form of an ‘end of year bonus’ Dozens of social projects including the provision of wells and bore holes for drinking water and construction of public toilets Mobile health programme to visit members’ villages Investment in various activities including the construction of two day care centres, a block of six classrooms and purchase of two mobile cinema vans for the farmers' education programme Construction of warehousing at Tema port Employment of Development Officers to advise farmers on good agricultural practices, set up training programmes in management and leadership skills and organise HIV/AIDS workshops. They have also initiated alternative income generating schemes, particularly for the empowerment of women, such as tie-dye textiles, soap making, palm nut production and palm oil extraction, corn milling, and snail farming for local and export markets. Sales to the Fairtrade market account for around 3% of Kuapa’s total production and increased from 450 tonnes in 1999 to 1,800 tonnes in 2004. The participation of women is actively promoted: each society elects a Management Committee of seven including at least two women. Each society then delegates one female and one male member to elect Area/Regional Executive Committees of which two of the seven members must be women; five of the 33 members of the National Executive Committee are women. One of the two delegates sent to the AGM by each society must be a woman. Seminars and workshops have been introduced to help women develop other income generating activities such as making soap from the potash produced from burnt cocoa husks. Kuapa is a founder member of the Day Chocolate Company, a Fairtrade company based in London. Kuapa owns a 33% share in the company and has two elected representatives on the board. Kuapa contributes to manufacturing and marketing decisions and receives a share of company profits. In the UK, Kuapa cocoa beans are used in a growing number of Fairtrade products including Day Chocolate Company's Divine milk chocolate, dark chocolate and Dubble bars; Co-op and Starbucks own brand chocolate bars; and in some Body Shop, Oxfam and Traidcraft products. source: www.fairtrade.org.uk |
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