M&A
Divine Chocolate acquires Swedish fair-trade company to expand in Scandinavian market
The Gothenburg-based company is a member and one of the founders of the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO). It started in 1969 as a seller of an attractive range of fair-trade handicrafts supporting artisan producers in a number of countries worldwide.
According to Divine, The House of Fair Trade has been distributing its products in Sweden for the last 15 years.
The chocolate maker said: ‘Telling the inspirational story of Divine, and the co-operative of cocoa farmers in Ghana who own the biggest share of the business, they have grown Divine’s sales across Sweden and helped to establish the Divine brand in the Scandinavian market.’
Sophi Tranchell, CEO of Divine, added: “Working with The House of Fair Trade, we look forward to building Divine’s presence in Sweden and the rest of Scandinavia where fair trade continues to grow in popularity.”
According to Fairtrade International Annual report, the fair trade markets in Sweden and Norway grew by 29% and 10% in sales respectively in 2016/2017. The Swedish fair trade market was worth £305.5m ($400.87m) and the Norwegian market £78.6m ($103.14m).
The launch of Fair Trade Charter
Divine noted the acquisition coincides with a new Fair Trade Charter, developed collaboratively by the WFTO and Fairtrade International.
Launching today (September 25, 2018), the Fair Trade Charter will detail the ‘positive impact of Fair Trade on producers and craft artisans around the world to date, updating their policies, and detailing their joint ambitions and targets for the future,’ according to Divine.
Tranchell said: “We are pleased to be supporting Fairtrade producers and WFTO artisan members, at a time when these two major international organizations are reaffirming and updating their commitments to fairer trade for the future and closely aligning their ambitions to meeting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.”
She added Divine will continue selling products from artisan suppliers, which are all members of the WFTO, to ensure a sustainable income as well as labor and environmental standards.
