Enabling the leap to cocoa alternatives

In 2020, our client, a global leader in food ingredients, sought to explore the future of cocoa. While the company wanted to focus on innovations that would help secure a future supply of cocoa, we highlighted the vulnerabilities in the cocoa supply chain, particularly its reliance on specific regions facing increasing environmental and economic pressures. Given the risk of supply shortages and volatile prices, the need for long-term solutions to ensure cocoa’s availability became ever more urgent.

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To help our client navigate these challenges, we took a strategic, foresight-driven approach, exploring the following three key opportunities for location-independent cocoa:

1. Cocoa substitutes: Identifying alternative ingredients that could replicate cocoa’s flavor and sensory qualities, while being sourced from regions less vulnerable to climate change and geopolitical issues.
   
   
2. Gene-edited cocoa: Investigating the potential of gene-edited cocoa to increase the resilience of cocoa plants to environmental stressors, thus reducing the risks of supply shortages.
   
   
3. Cell-cultivated cocoa: Exploring the emerging field of cell-cultivated cocoa, a process where cocoa cells are grown in controlled environments, offering a potential solution to produce cocoa outside of traditional growing regions.
   
   

Our work involved both foresight analysis and market validation. We ran an in-depth validation phase, testing both consumer interest and customer willingness to adopt these technologies. Our findings confirmed a strong market interest in location-independent cocoa, validating that this could be a key area for investment and development.

This project provided our client with a clear strategic roadmap, guiding them towards a more secure, sustainable future for cocoa sourcing. The work culminated in a build, buy, or partner recommendation, leading to the formation of a strategic partnership with one of the earliest pioneers in manufacturing location-independent cocoa. This partnership set the stage for the client to secure access to innovative cocoa-free food technologies and begin developing scalable, sustainable solutions.

By addressing cocoa’s vulnerabilities ahead of time, our client was able to take proactive steps to mitigate the risks posed by supply chain disruptions, ensuring a long-term, sustainable cocoa future.

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Looking to future-proof your supply chain with innovative solutions? Let’s discuss how we can help you navigate sustainability challenges and build strategic, forward-thinking partnerships.