GRi Business, Economics
& Finance 02 - 10 - 2003
Inter-Bank Exchange Rate of the Cedi
PBC honours 95 cocoa farmers
Coffee Roasters introduce organic Better World Hot Cocoa
Inter-Bank Exchange Rate of the Cedi
Accra (Greater Accra) 02 October 2003
Currency Buying Selling
U.S.
Dollar
8,620.00 8,798.00
Pound Sterling
14,372.13 14,671.54
Swiss
Franc
6,556.93 6,688.95
Canadian Dollar
6,403.83 6,532.88
Danish Kroner
1,361.74 1,389.56
Japanese Yen
77.72 79.29
South African Rand 1,256.71 1,275.08
Euro
10,116.23 10,321.17
CFA
Franc
15.42 15.73
Naira
67.80 69.20
ECOWAS WAUA 12,309.06
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Enchi (Western Region) 02 October 2003 - The Cocoa Producer Review Committee (CPPRC) would soon meet to deliberate on a new producer price that would be beneficial to the country's hard working cocoa farmers.
The new producer price would also help to attain the target of 69 percent of the projected Free On Board (FOB) price for the 2003-04 season, Mr Kwame Sarpong, Chief Executive of Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), has said.
He was addressing a rally at Enchi, during which the Produce Buying Company (PBC) honoured 95 cocoa farmers for their outstanding performance in the last season.
Sarpong said government's commitment to pay cocoa farmers 70 percent of the projected FOB price by the 2004-05 season, was on course. COCOBOD currently pays 8.5 million cedis per tonne of cocoa to farmers, representing 68 percent FOB, up from 6.2 million cedis in the 2001-02 crop year.
Sarpong said COCOBOD had initiated measures that would save farmers from queuing for long hours and days to cash their Akuafo cheques at the designated banks and implored them to receive only cheques in payment for their produce.
The use of the Akuafo cheque has numerous advantages, including the elimination of fraud and cheating, he said, adding that, it would also inculcate the practice of saving and record keeping for the payment of bonuses to the farmers.
Sarpong warned that COCOBOD would sanction buyers who would pay cash for their purchases or found to have abused the cheque system.
E. Owusu Boakye, Managing Director of PBC, said the board of directors and management of PBC were working collectively to tighten "loose ends" in its operations to make the partnership between the company and the farmers sustainable.
He said PBC was working to secure ready market for the produce of farmers produce to enhance prompt payment and records on farmers' sales to ensure access to facilities such as bonuses, scholarship awards, as well as benefiting from the hi-tech farming methods.
Boakye urged the farmers to protect the premium quality of the produce and to ensure regular maintenance of their farms. "You must expose market clerks and other field staff who misconduct themselves when they come to buy your produce," he said.
Nana Paul Osei, Opanin Egya Okra, Mr Nelson Avogah and Mr A. K. Dapaah, who were adjudged outstanding farmers in the Western Region, were presented with items ranging from Television sets, Gas cookers, Spraying machines, Pesticides, Wellington boots and machetes.
Ninety-one other farmers also received prizes.
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Coffee Roasters introduce organic Better World Hot Cocoa
Waterbury (USA) 02 October 2003 - Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. has
introduced Fair Trade Certified(TM) organic Better World Hot Cocoa (TM). The
delicious new cocoa mix, which is available from 13 Oct. only through the
Company's direct mail catalogue and e-commerce website
www.GreenMountainCoffee.com, is Green Mountain Coffee Roasters' first non-coffee
Fair Trade product introduction. Better World Hot Cocoa has arrived just in time
for the 2003 holiday season, and is providing small-scale cocoa growers with a
fair price for their crop - a price that is more than triple that earned by
conventional, non-Fair Trade farmers. The new cocoa has been Fair Trade
Certified by TransFair USA and has received organic certification from Quality
Assurance International (QAI).
Globally, 14 million people grew over 6 billion pounds of cocoa in the 2000/2001-crop year. Nearly two-thirds of the cocoa product imports from the world's cocoa producing countries were consumed by Western Europe and North America. The United States alone consumed 3.3 billion pounds of chocolate in 2000 that was produced from just over 1 billion pounds of cocoa beans, or about 17 percent of the world's production.
Like small-scale coffee farmers, conventional cocoa growers rarely receive more than a tiny percentage of the price consumers pay for the finished product. Sadly, most only receive about one penny from the sale of a typical chocolate bar that retails for sixty cents (1.92-oz., with cocoa solids averaging 20%).
The Fair Trade farmers in the Dominican Republic who grew the cocoa used in Better World Hot Cocoa are among the world's 42,000 growers who belong to eight democratically organized Fair Trade cocoa cooperatives. These farmers, who generally own fewer than 12 acres of land, use the Fair Trade premiums they receive to support local social and economic initiatives targeted at improving the quality of life in their communities. Forced labor and child labor are strictly prohibited by these Fair Trade cooperatives.
Better World Hot Cocoa is produced by Lake Champlain Chocolates in Burlington, Vermont. It is available in 8-oz. canisters for $5.95. When combined with heated milk, each canister will make ten 8-oz. servings of delicious hot chocolate.
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. is a leader in the specialty coffee industry and has been recognized by Forbes magazine for the past three years as one of the "200 Best Small Companies in America." Green Mountain Coffee seeks to make the world a better place for present and future generations by operating in an environmentally and socially conscientious manner. The Company contributes at least five percent of its pre-tax profit annually to support socially responsible initiatives, many of which it has supported for over 10 years.
In 2003, the Rainforest Alliance recognized Green Mountain Coffee Roasters with its highest award as its "Corporate Sustainable Standard-Setter" for the Company's commitment to sourcing coffee in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. Business Ethics magazine recognized these efforts by ranking Green Mountain Coffee Roasters 8th overall on its 2003 list of "100 Best Corporate Citizens."
The Company roasts high-quality arabica coffees and offers over 90 coffee selections including single-origin, estate, certified organic, Fair Trade, signature blends, and flavored coffees that it sells under the Green Mountain Coffee Roasters(R) and Newman's Own(R) Organics brands. The majority of Green Mountain Coffee's revenue is derived from its wholesale operation that serves supermarkets, convenience stores, offices, and other locations where fine coffees are sold. Green Mountain Coffee also operates a direct mail business and an e-commerce website (http://www.GreenMountainCoffee.com) from its Waterbury, Vermont headquarters.
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