#MonthOfBCompanies: Sustainability at República del Cacao
At República del Cacao, we understand sustainability as a daily practice that connects people, territory, and purpose. Our impact is built on four strategic pillars of sustainability that turn commitment into results: Responsible Sourcing, Conscious Gastronomy, Community with Purpose, and Environmental Commitment.
Responsible Sourcing:
We respect the origin of each ingredient, cultivating strong relationships to offer traceable and sustainable chocolate.
At República del Cacao, the work begins on the farms, where we promote training processes for producers through field schools and training in good agricultural practices, safety, traceability, associativity, financial management, and cocoa fermentation and drying techniques. During 2025, more than 80 farmers participated in these learning spaces, strengthening their production techniques and expanding their comprehensive knowledge of cacao and its environment. In addition, this support is complemented by the strengthening of our relationship with suppliers of other strategic raw materials such as milk and panela.
At the end of the year, we pay tribute to our cocoa-growing partners at Chocolatada 2025, our annual celebration where we reflect on the year's work, share our vision for the years ahead, and strengthen our joint relationship so we can continue to grow together.
Conscious Gastronomy:
We promote a conscious connection between the knowledge and art of chocolate making to generate a sustainable impact on the gastronomic community.
For República del Cacao, the art of chocolate making is also a platform for transformation. In this context, in 2025 we launched Fundamentos del Chocolate (Fundamentals of Chocolate), a gastronomic research project led by our Corporate Chef that translates technical knowledge into basic recipes for professionals using all our products: from mousses to sorbets, creams, ganaches, and ice creams.
This vision is also projected through strategic alliances. Together with the United Nations World Food Program, we are developing an initiative that will be launched in the first half of 2026 and seeks social transformation through gastronomy. This project integrates sustainability, food security, and awareness of fair and responsible eating in Ecuador into everyday gastronomic practices. We will share more details soon!
As part of this ongoing exchange of knowledge, our Cacao Talks played a key role. In 2025, we discussed "Culinary identity: how to build and maintain it" with renowned Ecuadorian chefs, enriching the exchange of knowledge among members of our community.
Purposeful community:
We build alliances for the development and creation of value among our stakeholders, creating a positive impact on society.
Sustainability is strengthened when it is built within a community. In 2025, we organized two editions of Comida Buena, our initiative that supports social gastronomic ventures through workshops with renowned chefs from our community. This initiative was made possible thanks to our partnership with the Ecuadorian NGO FUDELA, which allows us to multiply the positive impact and benefit migrant women and men with gastronomic ventures.
Under this same commitment, we participate in forums for dialogue on inclusion and female leadership alongside universities, NGOs, and the private sector. One of these meetings brought together 180 women cocoa farmers from across the country, providing a space in which we were able to share the experience and vision of República del Cacao as a producer and exporter of fine chocolate.
Thanks to the work of this pillar, Community with Purpose, and the Responsible Sourcing pillar, we were recognized with the Nonviolence Seal, awarded by the Nonviolence Foundation, an organization affiliated with the United Nations. Both pillars have reflected ethical and sustainable actions, promoting gender equality and the inclusion of vulnerable groups, which has strengthened productive networks with a collective purpose.
Environmental Commitment:
We work for a better planet by focusing our processes on the regeneration of ecosystems.
At República del Cacao, we care for the planet. That is why, in 2025, we invested in measuring our carbon footprint as part of our commitment to responsible management. This assessment allows us to identify the main sources of emissions in our operations and establish a reduction plan for 2026 with specific actions, focusing our efforts on reducing our environmental impact.
In addition, we modernized the nursery at our Vinces Collection Center by incorporating 7,500 grafted fine aroma cocoa plants. This project has a threefold objective: to deliver plants to partner farmers in the area for farm renewal, to preserve fine cocoa as an emblematic species of Ecuador, and to strengthen traceability.
We produce conscientiously for a more sustainable future!
Transparency that builds trust
Transparency is a cross-cutting principle that guides the way we work and interact with our entire community, from producers to chefs. We believe that clearly communicating our progress and challenges strengthens trust, drives continuous improvement, and ensures responsible management.
Thus, in 2025, we strengthened our accountability by launching our second Sustainability Report aligned with international standards. We were also recognized by Vistazo magazine as one of the 50 Ecuadorian companies that contribute most to the SDGs.
During this B Corporation Month, we reaffirm that our purpose is embodied in each of our four pillars and underpinned by an essential value: transparency. Every action we take seeks to generate a positive impact on people, the planet, and a new form of leadership that strives to balance profit and purpose.
For us, being a B Corporation is a way to manage conscientiously, to be accountable with honesty, and to demonstrate that it is possible to grow while generating shared value.