Colombian cocoa is gaining recognition and expanding its market in the United Kingdom.
Most recently, the sofi™ Awards honoured Willie's Cacao with a silver medal for its hot chocolate drink made with 52% single-origin cocoa from Medellin in Colombia.
‘As importers of the best chocolate and confectionery products in Europe, we are always looking for products of the highest quality. This validates our choice,’ Willie's Cacao said in a statement.
Willie's Cacao is supported by ProColombia – a government institution that promotes investment, exports, tourism, and the country as a brand.
The UK has also seen the launch of 41% Colombian cocoa bars on Ocado by Love Cocoa in two variants – Salted Caramel and Happy Birthday.
Love Cocoa is a British brand that combines traditional English flavours with contemporary ingredients to make luxury chocolates.
Elsewhere, Coco Caravan’s 100% Colombian Arhuaco chocolate bar won the gold medal at the International Organic Awards 2020 in the United Kingdom.
Coco Caravan met the suppliers of cacao for this product at the Cocoa and Chocolate Roundtable, co-ordinated by ProColombia in November 2019.
The next edition of the Cocoa and Chocolate Roundtable will take place online from 20 to 23 October 2020.
The event aims to promote business meetings between exporters of cacao beans, derivatives, specialties, chocolate, and other cocoa products.
Colombia is the tenth-largest producer of cacao in the world, with 95% of its output recognised as 'fine flavour' – a distinction granted to only 5% of beans produced in the world.
Colombian cocoa has won International Cocoa Awards in 2010, 2011, 2015, and 2019, while cocoa production registered a compound annual growth of 2.2% between 2015 and 2019.
The industry generates 90,000 direct jobs and 20,000 indirect jobs in Colombia.
The Colombian cocoa market is projected to see a CAGR of 6.3% between 2019 and 2024, according to Euromonitor International and ProColombia's calculations.
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