Lidl is the first global retailer to design and launch an own-label chocolate bar with the objective of directly supporting workers, smallholder farmers and local communities by increasing wages and promoting diversification.
We are committed to investing in products and business models that deliver greater returns to people working in the supply chain. 90% of the world’s cocoa harvest are grown by smallholder farmers. In Ghana, where a large proportion of the world's raw cocoa is sourced, the average income of cocoa farmers is 52% of the living wage benchmark (2018).
Through our partnership with Fairtrade, the farming cooperative Kuapa Kokoo and the NGO Rikolto, Lidl pays an additional Premium for every tonne of cocoa purchased from Ghana, that is used within the Way To Go! Chocolate bar - in addition to the standard Fairtrade Premium.
This Premium is invested directly into programmes that enable farmers to increase their incomes, such as diversifying into other crops (rice, yams and honey), or training farmers on better agricultural practices (pruning and environmentally friendly pesticide use). Through these programmes, crop yields can be increased, ensuring greater income levels. In the first year, our project reached 440 farmers, a quarter of whom were women.
The Way To Go! chocolate bar has full traceability, allowing us to track the raw material flow of cocoa from a cooperative in Ghana, through to our end product which has been available in Lidl stores in the UK since May 2020.