We are delighted and very proud that Divine Chocolate received the prestigious Queens Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development. After a rigorous application and judging process, Divine was favoured for its innovative and successful business model which empowers both farmers and consumers, and works to ensure a sustainable future for people and planet.
The full list of winners of the Queens Award for Enterprise was announced on April 21st, the Queen’s official birthday, and Divine’s award itself will be presented later this year to the company by one of HM’s Lieutenants of Greater London at Divine’s offices, followed by a reception at Buckingham Palace.
Sophi Tranchell MBE, CEO of Divine Chocolate says:
“We firmly believe that inequality and poverty go hand in hand, and that a more equal society benefits everyone. We have built a company designed to address inequality – between those at the start and the end of the supply chain, between men and women, between those with fair access to opportunities and those without. A sustainable future for people, and for the planet, will depend on tackling these inequalities and empowering people to create a world we all want to live in.”
“Importantly, it is also an enormous point of pride for our owners, the cocoa farmers of Kuapa Kokoo in Ghana, who this year celebrate their Silver Jubilee. They have shown that through co-operation, democratic principles and a drive for excellence, smallholder farmers can take their lives into their own hands, and build a sustainable future for themselves.”
Divine Chocolate was established in 1998, the year after the farmers of the Kuapa Kokoo co-operative voted to set up their own chocolate company. Today the company has reached £14m turnover and is based in UK and USA, with distribution around the world. Kuapa Kokoo has grown to over 85,000 members and produces around 1% of the world’s cocoa. The co-op benefits from four income streams from Divine, and has been pioneering in its approach to gender equality, child labor awareness, as well as co-operative governance.
The Queen’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development is particularly gratifying ahead of our 20th anniversary celebrations, demonstrating the durability of Divine Chocolate’s economic strategy of “doing business differently”.
To find out more about Divine's sustainable development mission, take a look at the 2016/17 Annual Report
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