ADM Cocoa marks five years of excellence in cocoa processing in Ghana—with positive socioeconomic impact for the people of the Ashanti region, in particular, and Ghana as a whole.

Cocoa and chocolate expert ADM Cocoa is marking five years of dedicated cocoa processing in the Ashanti Region, with a continuation of the successful partnership with key stakeholders, such as the Ghana Cocoa Board, and a string of important local initiatives.
 
Since opening the world-class cocoa processing facility in Kumasi in 2009, ADM has created over 250 jobs at its 75,000-square-meter purpose-built site, which houses a bean warehouse, processing plant and finished goods’ warehouse. ADM has also nurtured a local supplier network of more than 200 suppliers.
 
A founding member of the World Cocoa Foundation, ADM has pioneered numerous areas of social improvement across the region. Since 2011, ADM has invested US$90,000 into its health outreach program targeting HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis, enabling it to reach over 13,500 people in 67 communities. The company has also been instrumental in driving educational progress through various initiatives, such as training for post-secondary students on agri-logistics at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, and a donation of computers for the Kaase primary school. 
 
To mark its fifth full year of activity in the region, ADM is further extending its work in the areas of health, education and sustainability. This will comprise a donation towards the construction of a mechanized water facility for the Asuhyiae Health Centre situated in a cluster of cocoa growing communities in the Ahafo Ano North District of the Ashanti region, as well as a donation to the Otumfuo Charity Foundation in support of school refurbishment and sponsorship of awards for teachers in deprived communities.
 
Nicolas Poyade, ADM Cocoa general manager, Kumasi, remarks that “when ADM first came to Ghana in 2005, the opportunity to build a sustainable cocoa business was evident for all to see. With the passion of the local community and the support of our business and government partners like the Ghana Cocoa Board, we’ve proved that it wasn’t just business: it was about sustainable business and doing the right things in the right way.”
 
“We’ve embedded all our key operating principles—The ADM Way, best practice manufacturing processes and a ‘zero incident culture’ in terms of health and safety,” John Scott Donkoh, plant manager adds. “As a result, we’ve been able to achieve zero lost work day cases in the first six years since construction began.”
 
Dr. F.K. Oppong, deputy chief executive (A&QC), COCOBOD comments, “ADM’s socio-economic contribution to the cocoa industry in Ghana, particularly in Kumasi, cannot be underestimated. We can only urge them to go beyond what they are already doing to improve the livelihoods of both those living in cocoa-growing communities and Ghanaians in general, to the benefit of all.”
ADM Ghana celebrated five years of cocoa processing in Ghana on Oct. 9, 2014.