Several buildings in the conservation zone, including farmers’ homes and warehouses, have been marked for removal by the government, but it hasn’t occurred. The rangers blame the state government that owns the forest for failing to enforce the law barring cocoa farming.

“The deforestation caused by cocoa expansion also stems from the world’s demand for cocoa to make chocolate,” said Emmanuel Olabode, a conservation manager who supervises the reserve’s rangers. But aging cocoa trees are becoming less productive, pushing farmers into Omo reserve. REASONS BEHIND THE WORKAn estimated 1.4 million people in Nigeria, equivalent to about half the population of Nevada, depend on cocoa production for their livelihood, according to the U.S.

In an interview with AP, Starlink acknowledged that it gets cocoa from Omo Forest Reserve. Olam confirmed the facility was theirs.ĪP also photographed cocoa bags labeled with the names and logo of Olam and Tulip inside farmers’ warehouses inside the conservation zone. In October, AP followed a van loaded with bags of cocoa beans from the conservation zone to an Olam warehouse outside the entrance of the forest. Mars and Ferrero list farming sources on their websites that are close to or overlap with the forest but offer no specific locations. and Ferrero, but because the chocolate supply chain is so complex and opaque, it’s not clear if cocoa from deforested parts of Omo Forest Reserve makes it into the sweets that they make, such as Snickers, M&Ms, Butterfinger and Nutella.

These big trading companies supply Nigerian cocoa to huge chocolate manufacturers like Mars Inc. “We buy from farmers and sell to big companies that export like Olam, Starlink,” said Deborah Fabiyi, a manager at Kadet Agro-Allied Investments Limited, a licensed buying agent in the conservation area.

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