The Swiss-Ghanaian start-up achieved a B Corp Certification score of 95.7 points in recognition for its socially responsible business and innovative cocoa fruit venture.
“Nowadays, measuring the success of a company needs to go beyond pure financial performance. Since our inception, we measure our success on the triple bottom line: people, planet and profit.
“Being B Corp certified, we join a community of businesses around the world leading the transformation of the global economic system and we hope that many of our peers will follow our example,” said Benjamin Kuschnik, Koa’s Co-Founder and Group Finance Director.
B Corp sets a minimum score of 80 points on the B Impact Assessment to be certified and repeats the verification process every three years.
After a rigorous review of Koa’s impact, the extensive assessment measured its ongoing impact on its workers, community and suppliers, customers, governance and the environment to make sure that the company is meeting high international standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency.
As a B Corp, the start-up joins the growing movement of approximately 6,000 Certified B Corporations from 158 industries across 86 countries, including companies like Ben & Jerry’s, Innocent Drinks and Valrhona.
Lucy Muigai, CEO of the African B Lab certifying Koa, said: “This is not only a win for Koa but a win for the B Corp movement. The recognition marks Koa’s continued investment in tackling poverty in the cocoa supply chain and strengthening rural communities through job creation.
Koa joining the B Corp community signals a shift towards greater accountability and transparency in the cocoa sector.”
Founded in 2017, Koa is disrupting the cocoa industry through its innovative upcycling of cocoa fruit. Koa is the first company in West Africa to have unlocked a new value chain around the so far discarded cocoa pulp and worldwide the first cocoa fruit brand to become a B Corp.
Working closely with cocoa smallholders, Koa reduces on-farm food waste around the cocoa fruit, generates additional farmer income and creates new jobs in rural communities. At the same time, Koa brings unique new ingredients to the food and beverage industry for applications ranging from chocolate and confectionery to ice cream or drinks.
Besides environmental improvements, Koa said it is actively training its workforce for an international environment and is committed to having more women and minorities in leadership positions since diversity is at the core of its business and the team aims to set an example beyond the sector it works in.
