Nestlé Set To Pay Cocoa Growers To Keep Children In School

Nestlé has announced plans to start paying cocoa farmers cash if they send their children to school rather than out to tend crops, as part of a push to purchase all of its cocoa through a fully traceable, directly sourced supply chain by 2025.

The food group behind KitKat chocolate bars and Smarties confectionery said it will triple its current annual spending on sustainable cocoa to give a total investment of CHF 1.3 billion (€1.25 billion) by 2030.

To qualify for the payments, farmers have to send their children to school, prune cocoa trees, plant shade trees and diversify their income with other crops or livestock.

ESM