Hosted by the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA) and Know Your Cocoa Foundation (KYC ), the theme this year is ‘Africa Beyond Beans’, with an awareness of attracting a new ‘generation of cocoapreneurs’ into the industry.
For more than a century, Africa has led the world in cocoa production, and Ghana has been the bulk industry leader for cocoa quality.
Multinational chocolate makers and cocoa processors rely upon the high volume and superior quality of Ghanaian cocoa to sustain the $100bn global industry for chocolate.
In a statement, ACCE said: “Building upon this established and respected position as a primary cocoa exporter, in recent years, entrepreneurs, change-makers, experts, and key stakeholders have introduced new dynamics to the industry, adding value to Ghana’s cocoa crop in innovative ways and generating opportunities for investment and technological advancement in cocoa farming, processing, manufacture, distribution, and retail.”
Know your cocoa
The Know Your Cocoa Foundation is a non-profit organisation dedicated to supporting cocoa value addition activities primarily in Ghana and eventually in the entire African continent. It came up with the idea to organise the maiden African Cocoa and Chocolate Expo (ACCE) in 2019 on the backdrop of all these changes in the industry. It also recognised the urgent need to promote intentional and purposeful value addition, which would then lead to an increase in cocoa consumption.
This year’s ACCE will showcase numerous achievements and innovations by bringing together industry leaders, participants and the interested visitors for knowledge, networking and dialogue.
- The event runs online from the 23 to 26 September and registration is free. Visit accexpo.com for more information.