Huel is proud to partner with chocolate makers and B Corp brand, Tony's Chocolonely.
Tony's Chocolonely created Tony's Open Chain to address systemic issues in cocoa sourcing. As a Mission Ally, Huel sources cocoa for its relevant products through the programme. Find out more at tonysopenchain.com.
In an unjust cocoa industry, with continual poverty driving the use of child labour and environmental devastation, Tony's is taking a stand.
Tony's Open Chain was launched in 2019 as an open supply chain for companies that share its mission to address systemic issues in the cocoa industry, including labour rights and child labour. It's a very select group of Mission Allies that includes Ben & Jerry's, ALDI, and...Huel.
Pascal Baltussen, Chief of Impact and Operations at Tony's Chocolonely, on the mission behind Tony's Open Chain: "At Tony's Open Chain we work towards a future where cocoa farmers in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana can earn a living income, child labour is prevented and addressed, and deforestation is tackled through stronger sourcing practices.” The sourcing principles that Tony's Open Chain has implemented over the past 10 years is showing that this future is feasible — the biggest driver for change is scale."
The first key principle of Tony's Open Chain is traceable beans. There must be a link between the beans sourced, the conditions under which they're sourced, and the products sold.
Tony’s has a number of tools to help here, including a digital Beantracker designed to support cocoa bean traceability through the supply chain.
It’s also important that companies pay an additional premium on top of the certified bean price, as one measure intended to support farmers towards earning a living income and running their farms.
Allies commit to buying from and co-developing professional cooperatives as service providers for serious farmers. This involves direct contact with the farmers to help them grow their business. We're better together.
This isn't a short-term fix. By becoming a Tony's ally, Huel is agreeing to protect farmers' future incomes by signing longer-term purchasing agreements at a minimum of 5 years.
As part of Tony's Open Chain, the farmers we work with will also undertake productivity, diversification, and quality programmes to improve their yield, in line with Tony's Open Chain labour standards.
Data on progress against these principles is published in the Tony's Open Chain Impact Report.
Find out more about Huel’s sustainability work on our sustainability page.