PARTNER PROFILE

OrganisationYACAO is a subsidiary of PRONATEC in the Dominican Republic. The company is managed by German Agronomist Reinhard Michael Bader.

Today the organization employs 50 permanent and up to 25 seasonal staff. The main processing and export facilities are located in Medina, Provincia de San Cristóbal, just 40 km northwest of the capital Santo Domingo. Four other processing centers are spread over the Dominican Republic.

ProductsSince 1999 YACAO produces export ready Hispaniola and Sanchez cocoa. The cocoa beans are harvested fresh on the farms and then fermented, dried and selected in the company centers.

Due to our long-term commitment in the Dominican Republic, we are able to offer the following products:

• Cocoa beans

• Cocoa butter, cocoa mass and cocoa powder

• Chocolate coatings

• Chocolate bars

Organic Cocoa from the Dominican Republic

CERTIFICATIONSBioSuisse, EU 834/2007, NOP (USA), FLO Fair Trade, Ecocert Fair Trade, UTZ

YACAO SRL

PRONATEC AGStegackerstrasse 6

CH-8409 WinterthurSWITZERLAND

Phone +41 (0)52 234 09 09 Fax +41 (0)52 234 09 19

e-Mail info@pronatec.comwww.pronatec.com

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Our commitmentYACAO was founded in 1999 in the Yamasá region with Swiss capital to promote organic cocoa growing and to generate better income for farmers.

So, in rural areas suffering from depopulation YACAO contri-buted to create attractive new jobs. Prior to YACAO‘s com-mitment many farmers could barely sell their cocoa beans at attractive prices.

Thanks to close collaboration with the main suppliers of the cocoa, united in YACAO’s partner organisation FUNDOPO (Fundación Dominicana de Productores Organicos), the com-pany is able to provide real fair trade ethics.

Today a growing number of cocoa farmers benefits from a long-term perspective. So, Yacao is:

• Purchasing the entire crop of the FUNDOPO members and paying a bonus price for organic and Fair trade quality

• Pre-financing the production and the harvest costs

• Financing the organic certification

• Providing training and advice on agricultural and social to-pics through a team of highly motivated agronomists

• Contributing to strengthen farmers organizations • Providing high quality crafted cocoa seedlings at cost

price from YACAO’ s own Clonal Garden

Grown from 84 families in 2000 today FUNDOPO has more than 1000 members, organized in small farmer cooperatives in the main production areas.

The foundation ensures that the fairtrade premium is used ac-cording to the statute:

• 25 % are paid directly to the farmers to increase their in-come.

• 75 % are used by the small farmer organization FUNDO-PO for the implementation of all projects activities and their coordination.

In the last years FUNDOPO has invested the Fair Trade premium into the following projects:

• Renovation of cocoa trees in the farms• Introduction and distribution of new plant material

to the farmers• Community projects (Building of submersible wells

and improvements of roads)• Strengthening of the technical and management

capacities of the organisation