About Ngoleagorbu Cocoa Farmers Union (NGOCFU)
We are organised cacao farmers from forest-edge communities. We work on good governance, support gender empowerment, and oppose child labour. We produce completely organic - there is no use of synthetic chemicals. Rather, we train our farmers in organic composting methods to increase our production and quality.
Our Cooperatives
There are now 3 cooperatives under our umbrella cooperative NGOCFU (Ngoleagorbu Cocoa Farmers Cooperative):
- Malema Cocoa Farmers Cooperative (MACFCO)
- Tunkia-Koya Cocoa Farmers Cooperative (TUNKOCFCO)
- Gaura Cocoa Farmers Cooperative (GACFCO)
A fouth cooperative is being added in 2022:
- Nomo Cocoa Farmers Cooperative (NOCFCO)
Commercial Strategy
Ngoleagorbu Cacao Farmers seek buyers that appreciate quality as well as the protection of the natural environment. Premiums paid are used to strengthen cooperatives in governance, gender, child labour prevention and good agricultural practices.
Our buyers
The Ngoleagorbu farmers have been exporting cacao since 2017. Our buyers include traders and chocolate makers in Europe and the USA.
Our Quality
Our farmers harvest only ripe pods. We use stones and sticks to open the pods, and then put the seeds in a clean bowl. The wet cacao seeds then go in a fermentation box, lined and covered with banana leaves. We turn the beans every 2 days, for 6 to 7 days. We then dry the beans in a drying booth, allowing good ventilation. By holding and pressing beans we determine if the beans are dry enough (no sticking, but a shaking sound). Before export, moisture of the beans must measure 6% with our aquaboy.
Environment & Sustainability
Cacao commercialised by farmers generates income that replaces and prevents potential illegal poaching or logging in the Gola Rainforest National Park. The GRNP is Sierra Leone's largest tract of rainforest, and covers 71,070 hectares in the east of the country. Recent biological surveys show that the forest is home to more than 330 species of birds, 14 of which are threatened, over 650 species of butterfly and 49 species of mammals, including a population of 300+ chimpanzees, pygmy hippopotamuses and a much dwindled forest elephant population. The GRNP is part of the Upper Guinea Forest, a biodiversity hotspot that stretches from Guinea to Togo. (Source: Wikipedia)