Accra, Ghana, March 21, 2018 -  For the first time ever in Ghana, cocoa farmers have obtained official ownership of valuable non-cocoa trees on their farms. Benefiting from this breakthrough are 150 farmers in Ghana’s Western Region who have successfully petitioned the Ghanaian government to register ownership of trees planted on their cocoa farms. Leading the effort was an international consortium consisting of the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF), Sustainable Food Lab, Agro Eco - Louis Bolk Institute, and Meridia. It comes as the chocolate and cocoa sector works closely with the governments of Ghana and neighboring Côte d’Ivoire to end deforestation and forest degradation in the cocoa supply chain. Their work was funded by the United States Agency for International Development as part of Feed the Future, the U.S. government’s global hunger and food security initiative.

Unleashing the potential of tree ownership is an important milestone for efforts to conserve forests and support diversified sources of income for cocoa farmers. According to WCF Environment Director Ethan Budiansky, the new developments in Ghana “allow cocoa farmers to include shade trees as part of their business plans. Growing cocoa alongside shade trees helps farmers confront the effects of climate change, and provides additional sources of income.”

Cocoa and chocolate companies working with farmers on climate adaptation and landscape level resilience have long called for farmers to be granted guaranteed ownership of timber trees. In partnership with the Ghana Forestry Commission and Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, the consortium successfully tested an affordable new tree registration system, using the latest technology to gather data on 150 farms and create registration forms. Ghanaian government officials played a critical role in attributing registration numbers to the farmers’ trees.

Thomas Amoah, one of the participating cocoa farmers, said, “with registration of my trees, I protected my farm from illegal logging and chainsaw operators, and I hope we can finally make some money from our shade trees."

Rosemond Ofosu, another cocoa farmer near Asankrangwa echoed Amoah’s comments, saying, "I will now plant more trees on my farm because the loggers will not be allowed to destroy my farm."

Ensuring tree tenure for West African cocoa farmers is key to preserving the productivity of their farms. When growing timber trees on their land, farmers can earn money by thinning trees halfway through the 25 to 30-year cocoa life cycle.  Even more income is possible at the end of this cycle, when heavy investments are needed to rehabilitate aged cocoa trees. Tree tenure is also seen by experts as a way to fight the growing problem of illegal mining (galamsey). Agroforestry prompts farmers and their families to take a longer-term view of land management, thereby reducing the appeal of risky short-term gains offered through galamsey.

Cocoa, the main ingredient in chocolate, originates from the Amazon Basin rainforest, where for millennia it has grown under the forest canopy cover. But, in West Africa, where 70 percent of the world’s cocoa beans are produced, cocoa is often monocropped, with little to no shade. With climate change now threatening cocoa farms, forests and shade trees can positively affect local climatic conditions by promoting cooler temperatures, keeping moisture in the air and the soil, and helping maintain soil fertility. In addition to providing shade, trees help improve biodiversity by creating a friendly environment for birds and cocoa-pollinating insects. Different tree species also serve as an obstacle for pests that often spread diseases between cocoa trees.

Word Cocoa Foundation is a non-profit international membership organization whose vision is a sustainable and thriving cocoa sector – where farmers prosper, cocoa-growing communities are empowered, human rights are respected, and the environment is conserved. WCF has more than 100 members that represent 80 percent of the global cocoa and chocolate sector. Visit www.worldcocoa.org.

About Feed the Future: Feed the Future is the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security initiative. With a focus on smallholder farmers, particularly women, Feed the Future supports partner countries in developing their agriculture sectors to spur economic growth and trade that increase incomes and reduce hunger, poverty and undernutrition. For more information, visit www.feedthefuture.gov.

Sustainable Food Lab is a global network of organizations working together to facilitate market-based change for a healthy and sustainable food system. The mission of the Sustainable Food Lab is to accelerate market-driven progress toward a sustainable mainstream food system by supporting diverse and influential leaders. (www.sustainablefoodlab.org)

Agro Eco – Louis Bolk Institute has 20 years of experience in Ghana supporting, organizing smallholder farmers in making their farming more sustainable and developing demand driven value chains for quality, often certified products. Agro Eco dealt with more than 100 farmer groups and over 30 different products in Africa. Using a holistic, farm systems approach it works mainly for the private sector (companies and farmer organizations), secondly development organizations, NGOs and international organizations. (www.agroeco.net/)

Meridia aims to combine the technological tools and on-the-ground expertise to unlock land potential. From digitally mapping boundaries and validating legal documents to helping secure ownership, Meridia brings much-needed transparency and clarity to the communities that need it most. Meridia’s mission is to make the equitable distribution and use of land accessible to all. Not just one-off solutions, but a full-service approach that plays specifically into each community’s continuously changing needs.(www.meridia.land)

Ghana Forestry Commission: The Forestry Commission of Ghana (FC) is responsible for the regulation of utilization of forest and wildlife resources, the  conservation and management of those resources and the coordination of policies related to them. The Commission embodies the various public bodies and agencies that were individually implementing the functions of protection, management, the regulation of forest and wildlife resources. (www.fcghana.org)