Luciano’s Story: Growing More Cacao and Earning More with Kennemer

In his own words, Luciano shares:

“Before joining the Kennemer Growership program and Cacao-Trace program of Puratos (Kennemer’s customer), I used to harvest approximately 1,200 kg wet beans annually, earning PHP 37,200 ($672). The Kennemer Growership and Cacao-Trace program have significantly increased my cacao production. Kennemer provided me with high-yielding seedling varieties and I received training along with coaching and monitoring. Kennemer also pays a fair price and buys everything I produce. Thanks to Kennemer’s Productivity Enhancement Program (PEP), an effective hands-on training, I learned new management techniques and improved my yield. In the 2024/2025 season, I harvested approximately 1,904 kg of wet beans. My annual earnings have increased to PHP 209,440 ($3,773) because yield improved and cacao prices jumped. The Agricultural Training Institute, an agency under the Filipino Department of Agriculture, even selected my farm as one of the learning sites for Cacao Production.

Being part of the Kennemer Growership program and Cacao-Trace program is a privilege because of the opportunities they provide. Complying with the programs’ standards can be demanding, but ultimately rewarding because my farm thrives. The programs benefit us and promote sustainable cacao farming.”

Kennemer is the largest cocoa exporter in the Philippines. They trained and bought cacao from 12,806 farmers in 2024, and that number is set to grow in 2025. Because Kennemer buys directly from farmers, farmers earn more from the value chain and were paid much more when prices shot up in 2024. This happened because most traders did little to train farmers in Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana, the largest cocoa exporting nations in the world, leading to farm failures. Kennemer raises quality by fermenting wet cacao beans to earn a higher gross margin.