Andean Countries Cocoa Export Support Opportunity (ACCESO)
Luis Ardila is a cocoa farmer in San Vicente de Chucuri – Santander (Colombia). He is a third generation farmer who grows cocoa on 60% of his farm. “Cocoa was not my main source of income; with low productivity (around 325 kg per hectare per year) and over 60% of pods affected by monilia…revenue from the cocoa crop was simply not enough to take care of my family.”
The Issue:
- Cocoa farmers in Latin America frequently earn less due to diseases and pests that reduce their crop.
Partners:
- USAID
- IICA
- CICAD-OAS
How World Cocoa Foundation Programs Help:
- The Andean Countries Export Support Opportunity (ACCESO) is a public-private partnership formed by the World Cocoa Foundation, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).
- ACCESO aims to improve the competitive strength of the Andean cocoa farming sector by helping farmers improve the quality of their cocoa crop.
- ACCESO achieves it mission through several means:
- Teaching farmers techniques to improve the quantity and quality of their harvest; providing farmers tools they need to produce a better cocoa crop
- Formalizing a network that will increase linkages between research institutions, donor agencies, national governments, local and global chocolate industry within the region
- ACCESO has conducted regional workshops in Ecuador and Colombia, where farmers and trainers form Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru have learned ways to control pests and improve their productivity.
- 730 farmers in Peru have benefited from training in crop management and better post harvest practices.
Learn More:
April 2008 Progress to Date: ACCESO
Success Story: Cocoa is a Growing Business in San Martín, Peru
Success Story: Strengthening Farmer Organizations in the Andes