Jean Galler chocolate is FAIRTRADE

1. Galler chocolate has its own identity The chocolate is made according to exclusive Jean Galler recipes and to specific specifications. “The chocolate has its own “identity”, which can vary depending on the desired effect. For example, some recipes use chocolate with a higher vanilla content or woody notes, with varying degrees of acidity. The sugar and cocoa butter content is also checked,” explains Loïc Daemen, head of research and development at the chocolate factory.

2. Galler cocoa is 100% Fairtrade Cocoa is the main ingredient in chocolate. It is made from cocoa beans, which are mainly grown in Africa. In recent decades, several investigations have highlighted the extremely poor living conditions of cocoa farmers: poverty, child labor, exploitation of workers, inequalities, etc. Fair trade is a means of combating this situation. That is why in 2020 Jean Galler decided to obtain Fairtrade certification for all cocoa beans used to make chocolate.

3. Galler supports the Yeyasso cooperative in Côte d’Ivoire. The Yeyasso cooperative was founded in 2006 with 350 members and today has almost 4,000 members. It is made up of cocoa and coffee farmers. Their plantations together They cover an area of ​​almost 7,000 hectares. The cooperative is located in the town of Man, nicknamed the “city of 18 mountains”. Thanks to its microclimate, fauna and flora, this area is ideal for growing cocoa beans. The members of the cooperative went through difficult times due to the political conflicts in the region between 2002 and 2007. Today, Fairtrade certification allows them not only to be fairly compensated for their work, but also to obtain funds to invest in their projects. It also guarantees that the cooperative meets a number of clearly defined requirements in the areas of sustainability, working conditions, the prohibition of child labor, etc. Through the agroforestry project, which will benefit Yeyasso, Galler is realizing its desire to have a positive impact on all links in the production chain.

4. Not all the chocolate comes from cocoa beans grown in the Yeyasso cooperative, but it is enough to financially secure the cooperative. In practice, it is very difficult and costly to implement a system of full physical traceability of cocoa beans and the chocolate made from them. This is especially true if the cooperative does not guarantee the processing of the product, as is the case with Yeyasso. The independent auditing agency FLOCERT verifies that the quantity of beans used in a Fairtrade-labelled product (in this case, Galler chocolate) exactly corresponds to the quantity of beans purchased from the cooperatives under Fairtrade conditions. This is what we call administrative traceability. This system ensures that cocoa farmers benefit from fair trade and that agricultural practices are developed towards greater sustainability.