Akuna Cocoa Limited, Global South

Akuna Cocoa, established in 2022 in Sierra Leone, is a joint venture between Cocoasource (49%) and Idris Elba (51%). The company was created to build a transparent, vertically integrated cocoa supply chain that connects smallholder farmers directly with consumer-facing brands, reducing dependence on opaque sourcing systems dominated by intermediaries. While focused primarily on cocoa exports, Akuna Cocoa also works with cashews to help diversify farmers’ incomes. Supported by Cocoasource’s expertise and market access, the company collaborates with eight cooperatives and one farmer group, reaching nearly 16,000 smallholder farmers and actively exporting cocoa since 2023. 

Cocoasource, a Switzerland-based commodity trader founded in 2007, is a leading sustainable trader of cocoa, cashew, rubber, sesame seeds, and soybeans, serving clients such as Ferrero, Tony’s Chocolonely, Cargill, and Olam Group. In Sierra Leone, cocoa production faces challenges including low quality standards, limited farmer knowledge, weak transparency, and low farm-gate prices offered by intermediaries. Akuna Cocoa addresses these constraints by strengthening cooperatives, building farmer capacity, and creating a transparent value chain from farm to market. To help the company fully utilize its sourcing network and expand export operations, the CFC provided USD 1.5 million in working capital support.