For the first time, the cocoa Dominican will have a certification that ensures the geographical region from which the fruit and its derivatives come, the qualities of its flavor and aroma and the conditions in which it has been produced, in order to increase its value in the international markets.
It is a seal of Geographical Indication (IG), a tool that guarantees the quality of the product and links it to its geographical environment of origin.
The certification was released this Wednesday by the Department of agriculturewith the support of the European Union and the International Trade Center (ITC).
During the launch event of this sealthe Minister of Agriculture, Limber Cruz, stated that the certification will be a added value which will increase the competitiveness of the Dominican product in the international markets.
The president of Regulatory Council of this sealMassimiliano Wax, assured that this represents a result of more than 15 years of work between the producersindustrialists and exporters, who had been working individually to ensure the quality of their product, and that they will now have a tool that will allow them to define, together, “what are the rules of the game” so that a cocoa consider yourself Dominican.
“This is essential to be able to regulate it internally, and defend and promote it externally (…), we are in that enviable position that it is not a certification from outside who is going to tell us ‘you have to do the cocoa So. No: we ourselves are the ones who are going to define what are the characteristics that make the cocoa Dominican,” he noted.
Enhance your value
In the first eight months of this year alone, the exports of cocoa amount to 1,206.5 million dollars, according to data from the Department of agriculturewhich estimates a growth annual 18.6% of this product.
However, Wax assures that the cocoa It is an area that will be able to contribute up to a billion dollars in foreign exchange ($10,000 per ton).
Welcome Then, member of the Regulatory Councilpointed out to Diario Libre that the seal will allow raising the price of the Dominican product in the international markets at a time when raw materials are at a good price.
Likewise, he highlighted that the producers that are certified with this seal will be able to reduce costssince what previously required multiple certifications It can be summed up in that one.
However, he specified that it is still being determined whether it will be implemented by producer, by association or by company.
Implementation
The business consultant for ITC, Taiana Mora, explained that the seal will conclude its first phase in December, and that, starting next January, a second phase will begin that will be accompanied by technical assistance for the producers.
Wax explained to Diario Libre that first the agricultural technicians will be trained, who will then train the producers agricultural.
The idea is to encourage the more than 40,000 producers of cocoa are certified. He said that, although this certification will not be an exclusive requirement for the exportyes it must be acquired to name that cocoa is from dominican origin.
The EU supports it
The Dominican ambassador of the European Union In the Dominican Republic, Katja Afheldt, told Diario Libre that the seal of Geographical Indication will help the entire value chain of the sector cocoa to facilitate its recognition for its entry into the European market.
The diplomat specified that this seal has a methodology of implementation different from what the EU requires for the fulfillment of its regulations of deforestation (EU 2023/1115), a regulation whose application was postponed for another year by the European Commission, but which increases the regulation for the purchase of cocoa from countries like the Dominican Republic.
“They are different things but, in any case, I think everything is going in the same direction. The cocoa This is a high quality product qualitywhich are obviously distinguished and which you can collect prices highest in the market,” he said.
