Regenerative Organic and fair cocoa from Ivory Coast
Cocao beans proudly produced by a cooperative in Ivory Coast.
100% regenerative organic, 100% women, 100% transparent
KANY was founded in 2016. The project started with 14 producers and grew to now more than 500, covering approximately 1000 ha. KANY means “light” in the Akan language.
This is an initiative for women and a flagship cocoa project for transparency, true traceability and ecology.
KANY is certified against the highest sustainability standards, including organic (EU/NOP), regenerative organic (Regenerative Organic Certified), and fair trade (Fair for Life).
KANY has a strong partnership with Dr. Bronner’s that began in late 2020 for use of its cocoa beans in their Magic Chocolates. KANY now also engages with additional chocolate brands that are interested in supporting fair, sustainable cocoa production that also focuses on the development of women.
KANY’S SPECIAL STRUCTURE FOR WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT
Ensuring the recognition of work done by women.
KANY is committed to putting women in the spotlight to promote and strengthen them.
Women do considerable work on smallholder cocoa farms, but usually are not visible and not rewarded enough for their contribution. KANY has been changing this, thanks to its unique approach to empowering women, families and rural communities. This collaboration has a strong, positive impact in an impoverished area.
KANY has created a special structure to ensure that women get recognized for their work, even if they usually do not own the land. Each farm on the KANY farmer list must be represented by a woman; if the farm owner is a man, he has to choose a woman (usually his wife) to be registered as the representative of the farm. Premiums are divided and paid to the representative women directly (deposited into their own mobile-money account) to ensure that their contribution is visible, rewarded and valued.
KanY’s Commitment to true traceability and transparency
Regenerative Organic Agriculture
& Cocoa Quality
Our commitment to traceability and transparency
KANY is committed to true traceability and transparency in commercial relations with farmers, by weighing all cocoa on correctly calibrated scales (without deduction), paying a fair price and premium.
100% of KANY´s farms are geolocated. Purchase of cocoa from non-KANY farms is strictly prohibited and sanctioned. Intensive training and supervision of cocoa collectors and producers regularly takes place.
Transparency and effective traceability are easily verifiable with the implementation of payments via mobile-money.
100% of the organic premiums are directly paid to women and farm owners to their mobile-money accounts.
100% of cocoa purchases are directly paid to farmers by mobile-money.
KANY´S commitment to cocoa quality
KANY helps farmers to improve cocoa quality through intensive training and monitoring of harvesting, the fermentation and drying process.
KANY operates a cocoa fermentation center equipped with a solar dryer with an annual capacity of 25 MT.
In order to maintain cocoa traceability and quality, KANY implements rigorous quality control procedures. Exported batches always respect Grade 1 export cocoa specifications. Since 2020, KANY has been exporting cocoa to demanding buyers in Switzerland.
Cocoa Storage Facilities & Equipment
Thanks to premiums received for the coop, KANY was able to invest in the construction of several warehouses and state-of-the-art quality control equipment.
KANY currently has three warehouses with a collective capacity of 150 MT
Our commitment to regenerative organic agriculture
100% of farms are certified organic and Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC)
KANY is committed to practicing regenerative organic agriculture.
This includes promotion of Dynamic Agroforestry (DAF) and regular training on good agricultural practices for sustainable production, income diversification and mitigation of climate change effects.
None of KANY’s plots are located in a protected forest area.
