An Opportunity for Cocoa Producers in Latin America and the Caribbean

Cadmium is a heavy metal that builds up in the body and affects health. To control the amount of cadmium we consume, the EU has set the maximum levels allowed for different foods. A regulation specifying the maximum levels of cadmium in cocoa and chocolate products entered into force in January 2019, while other countries are devising similar regulations.

The effects of cadmium regulations on Latin America and the Caribbean pose a challenge to ensuring competitiveness of international trade in cocoa, which becomes even more relevant when we consider that the more than 400,000 cocoa producers use mainly traditional methods for their crops, and they lack the capacity to mitigate cadmium contamination with the efficiency and effectiveness required by the EU.

This reinforces the need to develop agreed-upon solutions that offer cacao producers the possibility of reacting rapidly to the requirements set in this regulation, in order to avoid the loss of market share in the EU. 

Compared to other cocoa-producing regions such as Africa and Asia-Pacific, specific areas of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) are particularly affected by the worrying levels of cadmium in their cocoa beans.  Therefore, there is an urgent need to identify and provide producers with proven tools for early mitigation of cadmium contamination in cocoa. 

Against this backdrop, CAF and Bioversity International—through the American Latin Cacao Initiative (ILAC)—published a study entitled “Cadmium in cocoa from Latin America and the Caribbean: A review of research and potential mitigation solutions.” 

The study presents the state of the art of research on sources of cadmium contamination in soils, soil properties affecting cadmium bioavailability, physiological mechanisms and variety differences in cadmium absorption by cocoa trees and the consequences of post-harvest processes. It also presents mitigation solutions applicable to cocoa in different contexts, which have been investigated through trials carried out by a team of experts and researchers specially consulted for the study.

The analysis also includes information on ongoing research projects, enabling stakeholders, and in particular, national regulatory bodies, to support the creation of technical solutions, in an effort to disseminate protocols and practical tools.

The challenge of complying with the EU standard for cadmium control offers cocoa-producing countries the opportunity to take concerted action to resolve this and other outstanding issues necessary for the development of the fine cocoa value chain.

The pending agenda to boost the fine cocoa sector includes not only resolving the urgent issue of keeping cadmium levels under control, but other aspects such as the approval of the sensory evaluation of cocoa and a greater influence on trade matters, through traceability, certification and adding value.

The sense of urgency that compliance with the EU standard has generated among government agencies, producers and brokers drives the need to address the fine cocoa value chain, from a regional approach that combines concerted action on strategic issues with traditional competition among producers.