La Loma, June 19, 2024
As part of the execution of its Social Investment Plan, Drummond Ltd. conducted a follow- up visit to the “Drummond in alliance with Agroemprende Cacao” project in the rural area of the municipality of Agustín Codazzi, showing significant progress in the productive and associative skills of the families belonging to the Perijá Cocoa Growers Association (Asocope).
“Very happy to see that the 75 families that are in this project, sponsored by Drummond, the Canadian Embassy, and Socodevi, are making progress; they have made cocoa renovation processes and this has allowed them to increase their production,” said Alexander Arévalo, Socodevi’s director of operations for the Agroemprende Cacao program.
The main objective of this project, which began in 2022, is to improve the productivity and competitiveness of the cocoa crop of Asocope in the municipality of Agustín Codazzi, Cesar. The progress achieved to date is proof of the successful collaborative work carried out.
“With this project we have strengthened ourselves commercially, administratively, and in an associative way. Today we have a recognized name and thanks to this project we are recognized even more. Thanks to the Canadian Embassy and Drummond, today the municipality of Agustín Codazzi is number one in terms of cocoa reports,” said Liliana Angulo, legal representative of Asocope.
During the visit, one of the micro profit centers was also inaugurated.
“This project has allowed me to learn how to graft, prune, and we have also seen significant progress in our productive enterprise. Progress has been made in the village. Today we have two micro profit centers, which help usto deliver quality cocoa and improve the cocoa process,” said Oscar Pabón, a project participant.
Asocope had an outstanding participation in the largest cocoa and chocolate fair in Europe. During the event, knowledge, experiences, and business opportunities were exchanged in order to consolidate and seek new international markets for Asocope. Asocope’s results and achievements were also presented, highlighting the positive impact and advances in the industry. This debut represents a significant step in its internationalization, strengthening its presence and competitiveness in the global cocoa and chocolate market.
Drummond Ltd. and the Canadian Embassy recognize that the success of this project is due to the active participation of the Association, as well as Socodevi as a partner and operator. The collective commitment is to continue working to strengthen the rural economy of the municipality and achieve the objectives set for the benefit and capacity building of our cocoa farmers.
“We are working together to strengthen the cocoa sector in the municipality of Agustin Codazzi, and the results so far have been very positive. Our objective is to continue strengthening Asocope’s productivity and competitiveness in order to contribute to the socioeconomic development of the region,” said Amalí Blanco Bohórquez, corporate social responsibility coordinator for Drummond Ltd.
These visits allow us to observe the progress and generate strategies to successfully complete the development of this project, which will end in February 2025.
