All cocoa beans sourced for our Choceur CHOCO CHANGER are 100% traceable. Knowing exactly where, when, and how the beans were harvested, and how they travel through our supply chain, gives us full transparency. Tony’s Open Chain does not source from any farms that overlap with protected areas. The initiative conducts rigorous checks to assess deforestation risks, using tools such as the Global Forest Watch Deforestation Risk Map and official Forestry Commission data. In addition, Tony’s Open Chain partners with analysis providers to enhance monitoring.

• All partner cooperatives are GPS polygon-mapped and assessed against environmentally protected areas and for deforestation risk.
• In 2024/25, 99.99% of Tony’s Open Chain’s supply chain was verified deforestation-free.

Cocoa farmers often struggle to earn enough to cover their basic living costs, such as food, decent housing, education and healthcare. As an Mission Ally, ALDI commits to paying an additional premium on top of the farmgate price (government-set minimum price for a kilogramme of cocoa beans) and the Fairtrade premium, helping farmers in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana move toward a living income. Living Income describes the income required for a household in a particular place to afford a decent standard of living for all members (Living Income Community of Practice, 2023).

• In 2024/25, 100% of cocoa farmers supplying to Tony’s Open Chain received premium payments above farmgate price –€7,033,727 in total.
• An analysis by Tony’s Open Chain showed that about 40.6% of farmers at the 3 longest-term partner cooperatives earned at or above the living income benchmark in 2024/25 – a significant increase of 19.1% to the previous season.

Buying more cocoa volumes from partner cooperatives means that the number of cocoa farmers benefitting from all 5 Sourcing Principles keeps increasing. Tony’s Open Chain supports partner cooperatives to invest in the professionalisation and growth of their business through paying a cooperative management fee. They also receive access to data from all implemented Tony’s Open Chain programmes (CLMRS, BeanTracker and GPS tracking), enabling them to make informed business decisions.

• In 2024/25, Tony’s Open Chain sourced 26,843 metric tons from partner cooperatives, 52% more than previous season. Overall, 32,133 West African cocoa farmers delivered to Tony’s Mission Allies.
• Tony’s Open Chain has invested a total of €3,918,550 in cooperative management fees since 2019. In 2024/25, €1,234,755 were paid to partner cooperatives.
• In 2024/25, 33,426 cocoa growing households in Tony’s Open Chain’s supply chain were covered by the Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation System (CLMRS), a system designed to identify, address, and prevent child labour.

Tony’s Open Chain makes long-term commitments to its cocoa partner cooperatives. For cocoa farmers, the long-term assurance of higher cocoa prices translates into economic stability, better financial planning and the ability to invest in farm improvements, which ultimately enhances farm resilience. It not only empowers cocoa-growing communities but also enables partner cooperatives to develop comprehensive 5-year strategic plans together with the Tony’s Open Chain team.

• By 2024/25, 5-year commitments, had been made with 11 partner cooperatives, with 5 of them already in their second term and onwards.
• As a Mission Ally, ALDI is also making 5-year commitments to source cocoa from Tony’s Open Chain. In 2025, this was renewed and extended to 10 years in total.

Higher prices and long-term partnerships enable cocoa farmers to invest in their farms. Tony’s Open Chain helps farmers to strengthen their businesses through agricultural programmes, including farm development plans and farming subsidies. These productivity initiatives ensure that their investments have the greatest possible impact on increasing yields and enhancing farm resilience.

• Tony’s Open Chain partner farmers are trained to regularly harvest, prune, and replace old or diseased cocoa trees, which is critical for preventing pests and fungal outbreaks.
• Individual coaching supports cocoa farmers’ development, providing valuable insights tailored to their needs. In the 2024/25 season, 156 coaches provided guidance on improved productivity and agroforestry practices to an estimated 23,000+ farmers.

“I have been working with Tony’s Open Chain since I joined the cooperative in 2020. What we appreciate most in this partnership is that Tony’s has a clear vision. Yes, they are passionate about cocoa beans, but beyond that, they care deeply about human rights. They connect both the raw material and the people who produce it.”

- Adama Fofana, Director of cocoa cooperative ECOJAD