Sustainability

Doing things right tastes better

We have been a proud supporter of the Cocoa Horizons Foundation since 2018. Through our relationship with the Cocoa Horizons Foundation, we want to improve the livelihoods of cocoa farmers and their communities by encouraging sustainable, entrepreneurial farming, improved productivity and community development.

Productivity

Cocoa Horizons drives cocoa farmer prosperity by pioneering innovative approaches to cocoa farming and making sure farmers now all about good agricultural practices. There’s a focus on increasing the yield per hectare and helping them to earn a better income by supporting them with personalised coaching and access to Farm Services. Menz Confectionery pays a farmer premium, directly increasing income to farmers so that they can invest in their farms and communities.

Community

We want to see thriving cocoa communities where all children can attend school and are protected from harmful work. That’s why we partner with the Cocoa Horizons Foundation to promote the importance of schooling in their farmer training, and supporting efforts to raise awareness about child labour, better understand its causes, and develop constructive solutions.

Women’s inclusion in training, farmer group administrative and management activities, and other business development opportunities are also key priorities. The Cocoa Horizons Foundation supports literacy and business skills training, and works with women and community-based women’s groups to create income generation opportunities.

Farmers, families and communities need easy access to clean, safe water. However, this basic life necessity is often elusive in rural communities. The Cocoa Horizons Foundation works with communities to provide boreholes and water filters for schools and households in remote areas. They also build school toilets and support initiatives to improve farmer access to basic health care services, including a health insurance program, vaccination campaigns, and free medical check-ups.

Environment

The Cocoa Horizons Foundation is committed to a deforestation-free, carbon positive cocoa supply chain. Cocoa Horizons focuses on activities and farmer coaching on environmental protections and practices that help increase carbon sequestration, reduce carbon emissions, and ensure deforestation free sourcing.

To learn more about the Cocoa Horizons Foundation and
their role in the community, visit www.cocoahorizons.org

RSPO Palm Oil

In days gone by the palm oil industry didn’t always act responsibly, environmentally or socially, and were responsible for deforestation as they planted more and more African Oil Palms to make their oil. Thankfully, today there’s a whole alternative source of palm oil that has been certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil - or RSPO for short. If the palm oil doesn’t meet all their criteria, it doesn’t get certified and we don’t use it, it’s as simple as that.

Like a lot of companies, we’ve looked at using alternatives, but these alternatives often have their own environmental and social challenges, so the best solution for us has been to use sustainable palm oil. (For example, some other types of oil need much larger amounts of land to produce the same amount of oil which could cause even bigger problems!)

We were the first Australian confectionery manufacturer to use RSPO Palm Oil in its compound chocolate, (we started way back in 2010) and this is how we can be confident we’ve met a specific set of environmental and social criteria, including everything from protecting the forests to the fair treatment of workers. Check our progress at www.rspo.org

Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation

We’re always looking for ways to do and be better, so we also signed up to be part of APCO which is all about keeping packaging materials out of landfill and retaining the maximum value of materials, energy and labour within the local economy. Together with the other companies who are part of APCO, we’re working towards reducing our environmental impact and achieving Australia’s 2025 National Packaging Targets to help build a sustainable national packaging ecosystem.

Click here to view our APCO Action Plan.

Solar

It’s no secret we all need to be smarter about the energy we use, and at Menz we’ve cranked up our solar in a major way! We’ve got so many solar panels on our Glynde factory roof, we produce 308.03 MWh, per year! It may not be what you’re thinking about while you’re getting stuck unto your FruChocs, but it’s all part of our mission to go beyond making delicious treats, and be the kind of company that’s doing the right thing whenever and wherever we can. That definitely makes life sweet!

Be Treatwise

We might be all about making life sweet, but we also believe in being treatwise. The Be Treatwise® initiative is designed to help our customers get the information they need to enjoy our products as part of a balanced diet and active lifestyle. As difficult as it can be sometimes, life is actually sweeter when you enjoy treats in moderation, so we’re proud to be part of this industry initiative. To find out more about the Be Treatwise® initiative, visit https://www.betreatwise.info/