JANUARY 2018

FAIRTRADE
‘Owned by cocoa farmers’ – Divine shouts about
its ethical ownership in packaging redesign
Divine Chocolate’s new packaging is
putting its farmer-owners at the forefront.
The ‘Owned by Cocoa Farmers’ seal
is stamped on the front of all packages
in the redesign, highlighting its ethical
credentials and that family farmers in
Ghana hold a 44% stake in the venture
with board representation. Inside the
packaging, each bar tells a different
story about a farmer, the structure of
the organisation and what the African
Adinkra symbols which adorn the
packaging mean.
The sharing bars are hitting stores
across the UK, USA and the rest of the
world this month, while the rest of the
product range is rolling out in 2018.
Divine says the design taps into
consumer trends including demand
for transparency on the provenance of
ingredients, concern over nutritional
content, and sustainability impact, all of
which have grown in the past five years.
Divine appointed Lewis Moberly to
lead the strategic design development for
the change.The company says great care
was taken to maintain important brand
assets such as the intricate Divine logo,
accents of gold and bold colours, and the
recognisable pattern of Adinkra symbols.
The changes mean the brand is bolder
against the cleaner one-colour pattern,
it adds.
“The new design also aims to boost
impulse purchases by improving
communication for premium chocolate
decision-making,” Divine added. “The
product name is more legible and more
prominence is given to the percentage of
cocoa. Divine research shows more than
half of premium chocolate shoppers look
for this when choosing quality chocolate.
Divine has made ethical commitments
across its range for many years, but only
communicated these consistently through
marketing channels.
AGRICULTURE
Scottish government: ‘Co-operation
is good for farming –we need more’
A discussion document on agriculture published by the Scottish
government includes a call for more collaboration among farmers
and within their supply chains.
The document was produced by the agricultural champions
team appointed by cabinet secretary Fergus Ewing to advise on
the government’s Vision for Agriculture.
It notes that “most farmers have not reaped huge benefits from
the spectacular growth of Scotland’s food and drink sector in
recent years.
“The failings of our supply chains are well documented. But
the solution must be for the various players to work together.”
The paper gives credit to the work of co-op players such as
the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society (SAOS), which
contributed to the research sessions.
“We have discussed collaboration at length with our
contributors and are struck by how many benefits it can bring:
economies of scale in purchasing and selling; sharing of
specialist machinery and staff; risk management; logistics;
branding and marketing.
“We see great potential in encouraging greater used of
collaboration and building on the excellent, if sometimes
unrecognised, work of the SAOS.”
The paper also highlights the internship scheme run by
Ringling, a business ring owned as a co-op by its members.
JANUARY 2018 | 9