Cocoa is our most important raw material, and we are committed to sourcing it responsibly. Through the Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program, we aim to create decent and resilient livelihoods for cocoa farmers and their families and to encourage more sustainable farming practices.
High-quality cocoa is the heart of our chocolate
Lindt & Sprüngli is a chocolate manufacturer that produces its own cocoa mass from the cocoa beans it sources for its Lindt-branded chocolate products. This allows us to oversee the production process from the selection and sourcing of cocoa beans to the production of cocoa mass, also known as cocoa liquor, and the finished product – “from bean to bar”. We purchase cocoa beans, cocoa butter, cocoa powder, and – for Ghirardelli and Russell Stover – chocolate mass.
Since 2020, we have been sourcing 100% of our cocoa beans through the Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program or other responsible sourcing programs (excluding Russell Stover). We extended the Farming Program to include cocoa butter in 2021 and cocoa powder in 2022.
Our Target
We aim to source 100%
of cocoa products – beans, butter, powder, and chocolate mass – through the
Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program or other responsible sourcing programs by
2025. In the reporting year 2024, we sourced a total of 61.3% of cocoa bean
equivalents through the Farming Program.
Farming Program Farmers
In 2024, a total of 118,000
cocoa farmers in seven cocoa producing countries participated in Lindt &
Sprüngli Farming Program.
Our Investment
In 2024, we invested a
total of CHF 33.6 million into the responsible sourcing of cocoa.
Our Farming Program in Detail
The Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program consists of four pillars:
Pillar 1 - Tracing our beans
Pillar 2 - Training the farmers
Pillar 3 - Investments for farmers and communities
Pillar 4 - Independently verifying our program
Visit the Farming Program website to learn more about the steps we are taking to support cocoa farmers, their families, and communities.
Since 2008, Lindt
& Sprüngli has contributed to building or refurbishing a total of 75
schools in the cocoa producing countries where our Farming Program is active,
benefiting approximately 14,200 children.
Access to clean water
Since 2008, approximately
203,000 community members have benefited from 260 drinking water systems and
boreholes built and maintained through Farming Program investments.
Support for farmers and their families
770 field staff work
with cocoa farmers in the Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program.
The Main Commitments of Our Sustainability Plan
Rural development
We aim to source 100%
of cocoa products – beans, butter, powder, and chocolate mass – through the
Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program or other responsible sourcing programs by
2025.
Biodiversity and ecosystems
We aim for no
deforestation in cocoa with a target date of December 31, 2025, and to work
towards the elimination of deforestation in our other primary
deforestation-linked supply chains (palm oil, soy, and pulp- and paper-based
packaging).
Responsible sourcing
We aim for 80% of our
sourced volumes of raw and packaging materials bearing significant
sustainability risks to be covered by a responsible sourcing program by 2025.
Climate
We aim to achieve
near- and long-term science-based targets and reach net-zero greenhouse gas
emissions across the value chain by 2050 as validated by the Science Based
Targets initiative (SBTi).
Respecting human rights
Lindt & Sprüngli
is committed to conducting business in an ethical and socially responsible
manner, respecting human rights and international labor standards. Our
commitment is detailed in our Human Rights Policy and guided by international
standards.
No corruption or bribery
Our employees and
business partners are expected to conduct business according to the highest
ethical standards of conduct. Lindt & Sprüngli condemns any form of bribery
and corruption.
Product quality and product safety
We are committed to
full and continuous compliance with regulations concerning the safety impacts
of our products.
Transparent and responsible communication
We are committed to
not targeting children under 16 in our direct advertising in media where at
least 30% of the audience are children under 16 years, to encouraging
responsible consumption, and providing transparent nutritional information,
and adhering to applicable national and international laws.
Occupational health and safety
We aim to continuously
reduce our safety risks to achieve our long-term vision of zero lost-time
accidents.
Water and waste
We aim to achieve a
10% reduction in municipal water withdrawal (versus 2019) per ton produced and
to develop an integrated water roadmap by 2025.
Enabling and motivating working environment
We aim to strengthen
our values led culture with our strong entrepreneurial spirit and an
unparalleled growth mindset.
Packaging
We aim to design over
90% of packaging to be recyclable by 2025.
Responsibly Sourced Hazelnuts
Hazelnuts are a priority raw material for Lindt & Sprüngli chocolate products. We aim to source 100% of the Turkish hazelnuts we source Rainforest Alliance Certified by 2025.
RSPO-Certified Palm Oil
Palm oil, palm kernel oil, and their fractions are used in limited amounts in certain fillings of our chocolate. We only purchase palm oil certified according to the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and always declare palm oil use on our product packaging. We aim to continue to source 100% of palm oil/palm kernel oil RSPO Certified.
Packaging
We proactively challenge our entire packaging portfolio and endeavor to reduce the amount of packaging materials used. Our focus areas are the use of recycled materials and design for recyclability. We aim to design over 90% of packaging to be recyclable by 2025.
Emissions Reduction
We are working to reduce our total emissions footprint across our global operations and value chain. Lindt & Sprüngli focuses on its commitment to achieve near- and long-term science-based climate and reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions across the value chain by 2050 as validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
