The German Initiative on Sustainable Cocoa (GISCO) is a joint initiative of the Federal Government, represented by the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the German Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL), the German sweets and confectionery industry, the German retail grocery trade, and civil society. Jointly, the multi-stakeholder initiative aims to improve the livelihood of cocoa farmers and their families, to conserve and protect natural resources and biodiversity in cocoa producing countries as well as to increase the cultivation and commercialization of sustainably produced cocoa. To achieve these objectives, the members of GISCO closely liaise with the governments of cocoa producing countries.
The German Initiative on Sustainable Cocoa was founded in June 2012 and has been a registered association since April 2014. Currently, GISCO has about 80 members and is open to other interested parties.
For more information, please contact the GISCO Secretariat by email: info@kakaoforum.de.
Inaugural meeting in Berlin, 13 June 2012
The German Initiative on Sustainable Cocoa was honored as Leuchtturmprojekt 2016 (Flagship Project 2016 for Sustainability) by the German Federal Government. In March 2017, it was awarded with the ZEIT WISSEN-Preis "Mut zur Nachhaltigkeit“ (sustainability award "Courage To Sustainability" of the ZEIT WISSEN initiative).
