We build collaborative partnerships with stakeholders across the food value chain comprising of innovators, food producers and processors, start-ups, policy makers and many others for creating the building blocks of a more sustainable future of food and agriculture.
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Helping cocoa farmers in West Africa produce more
West African countries of Ivory Coast,
Ghana, Cameroon, Nigeria and Togo
account for more than 70% of the
world’s cocoa production. There was an
opportunity, and a challenge, to increase
the yield and profit of thousands of
small-hold growers through the
development of a BioStimulant.
We collaborated with Croda International Plc on the product development of BANZAITM, the first proven chemical BioStimulant foliar spray, specifically designed for cocoa. BANZAITM actively promotes the production and
retention of pods, is environmentally non-toxic and benign, eliminating concerns about product residues for production of cocoa paste and, ultimately, chocolate.
We became the exclusive distributor of BANZAITM, with a marketing campaign that secured the biostimulator as a key element of sustainability for food chain cocoa projects. We also provided technical support, training, fundraising and payment solutions for West African farmers.
In 4 years of product trials BANZAITM, delivered a 40% yield uplift while helping reduce residues on the crop. Such impressive results lead to the creation of UPL’s advertising campaign, which was inspired by the words of Firiki Soro, an Ivory Coast small-hold grower, who stated “BANZAI changed my life”. He saw a significant increase in his cacao yield using BANZAI TM and set up his own shop to sell it to his neighbours and improve his income further.
Average yield increase with BANZAI (Kg/ha)
UPL’s continued focus is on spreading awareness of BANZAITM's potential within the West African cocoa growing communities, on increasing sales, and on rolling out availability to other cocoa‑growing regions.