The Cameroonian cocoa world has adopted the charter of the club of committed chocolatiers. Sigôji adheres to it

Michel MOTTE

Soon, six years ago, a chocolate factory was born in Schaltin, in the commune of Hamois. His name: Sigôji. At its head, a lady from Cameroon, Euphrasie Mpamba, mother of two children, wife of an Anthean of origin. After a stint in the European Community and in teaching, she decided to turn to chocolate. It must be said that in the Community it translated texts relating to cocoa. In addition, her grandfather was a cocoa farmer in Cameroon and as a child, she had wondered why he brought beans to the market and came back without it. Since then, she knows that he traded them with wholesalers who sent them to Europe where they would become chocolate.

Precisely: did the price offered by these wholesalers guarantee the producer enough to live properly? Unsure. Not at all sure, according to Euphrasia Mpamba. In fact, this is often the case, and does not the producer of cocoa, coffee, cotton or meat and milk in our country earn much less than the middlemen?

Chocolate Day

In six years, the chocolate maker has developed her business quite a bit. She was well aware of the situation of producers and thought about a way to see their future change.

A French chocolatier, Christophe Bertrand, shared the same thoughts and he has just launched, last May, a Club of committed chocolatiers. An idea concretized after tasting cocoa beans from Cameroon sent to him by a planter from the country.

Pleasantly surprised, both in commitment and quality, by the products tasted, he went there and he noticed the prevailing poverty. The club project was born, especially since he had also learned that the purchase price of the beans was far from being what one could have thought. With a colleague he launched the club.

From now on, the president (she prefers flag bearer) of the club in Belgium is none other than the boss of Sigôji. And the Condruzienne chose the chocolate day of this October 1st to present the project. From now on, for her, like the other chocolatiers involved, traceability is becoming a hobbyhorse.

There are currently a dozen of them who have approved the charter. Through it, the members of the club undertake to support the approach in order to promote sustainable cocoa in Belgium and around the world, by buying and using the raw material from the production of partner cooperatives.

In addition to this charter, there is also the guarantee of environmental responsibilities and employee savings. Consequences: on the one hand, the beans are bought at a price double that of the past, on the other hand the planter receives a bonus according to sales. And to be certain of traceability, the beans must be certified as committed chocolatiers and the acronym must appear on the bags. Euphrasie Mpamba is certain that committed chocolate can change the world of planters and buyers.

The club wants to expand to other countries, and that's normal.