Fundación Chocolats Halba

What Fundación Chocolats Halba does

Fundación Chocolats Halba, operating commercially as Chocolats Halba Honduras, is a wholly-owned Honduran subsidiary of the Swiss chocolate manufacturer Chocolats Halba. Established in 2013 in San Pedro Sula, the entity was created to rebuild and control the upstream supply of premium Trinitario fine cocoa following a 2008 Swiss Development Agency sustainability initiative launched after Hurricane Mitch destroyed Honduras' plantations. The company sources directly from more than 2,500 smallholder farmers organized in cooperatives across four origin regions (Zona Maya, Zona Caribe, Zona Olancho, and Zona Mosquitia), cultivating approximately 2,495 hectares with annual production of 187.5 tons. Its proprietary cultivation method, Dynamic Agroforestry Systems (DAF), integrates cocoa with timber trees, fruit trees, legumes, and food crops in diverse ecosystems with closed nutrient cycles, providing climate resilience and supplemental farmer income.

The company manages the entire supply chain end-to-end: direct purchasing from cooperatives, in-house post-harvest processing (wooden-box fermentation and sun-drying), laboratory-based quality control, and international shipping. It operates its own laboratory and quality center and runs training programs for sustainable cultivation and organic/Fairtrade certification, with roughly 50% of its cocoa double-certified. It offers 0% interest pre-financing to cooperatives and pays premium prices above the international market rate of $2,000–$2,500 per ton. Originally exporting exclusively to its Swiss parent, the company expanded in 2019 to supply chocolate manufacturers worldwide, leveraging full farm-to-port traceability. Its parent company's single-origin Honduras chocolate bars, produced using this cocoa, have won International Chocolate Awards since 2013.

Revenue mechanics center on B2B export of cocoa beans (and, indirectly through the parent, finished single-origin chocolate sold via Swiss retailer Coop). The company complements this with grant-funded development activity through partnerships with Rikolto, Helvetas Honduras, PUR Projet, the World Cocoa Foundation, COSUDE, and the PROCACAHO/PRAWANKA programs. Customer concentration has historically been anchored on the Swiss parent and Coop Switzerland, with diversification underway post-2019. The 2020 disclosed purchasing budget of $1.8–2 million and 30% COVID-era demand increase from Switzerland point to a small but growing specialty cocoa operation.

Name

Fundación Chocolats Halba

Legal name

Chocolats Halba Honduras

Website

https://chocolatshalba.hn

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Chocolats Halba Honduras is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Swiss chocolate maker Chocolats Halba, exporting premium Trinitario fine cocoa beans sourced from 2,500+ Honduran smallholder farmer cooperatives to chocolate manufacturers worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Premium Cocoa Bean Export

NAICS

Grain and Field Bean Merchant Wholesalers (42451), Grain and Field Bean Merchant Wholesalers (424510), Fruit and Tree Nut Farming (1113)

SIC

Wholesale-Farm Product Raw Materials (5150)

akta.pro primary industry

Coffee & Cacao Plantations (Coffee, Cocoa) (AFAGACAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Coffee, Tea & Cocoa Trading/Wholesale (AFAIAKAD), Fair Trade & Ethical Supply Chains (Certification, Traceability, Producer Support) (BPAGALAL)

Keywords

• Premium cocoa beans
• Trinitario cocoa export
• Sustainable cocoa sourcing
• Single origin cocoa
• Fine cocoa beans

Headquarters

HQ city

San Pedro Sula

HQ country

Honduras

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Cocoa Bean Export: Chocolats Halba Honduras purchases cocoa directly from farmer cooperatives in Honduras, handles quality control and post-harvest processing, then exports Trinitario fine cocoa beans to chocolate manufacturers. The company pays premium prices above international market rates for organic and fairtrade certified cocoa, representing about 50% of their total cocoa purchases.
2. Technical Services and Training: Provides training courses for sustainable cocoa cultivation and quality improvement to partner cooperatives. While primarily supporting the core cocoa export business, this creates value through improved farmer capabilities and bean quality.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Chocolats Halba Honduras sources premium Trinitario fine cocoa beans directly from over 2,500 smallholder farmers organized in cooperatives across four Honduran regions, manages post-harvest processing (fermentation, drying, quality control) at its own laboratory, and exports the beans to chocolate manufacturers globally. The operation covers the complete supply chain from cooperative purchasing through quality assurance to international shipping, with 50% of cocoa dual-certified organic and Fairtrade.

Product overview

Chocolats Halba Honduras operates as a cocoa bean exporter and agricultural supply chain partner, offering two core products: Trinitario fine cocoa beans exported directly to international chocolate manufacturers, and single-origin chocolate bars produced in Switzerland using their Honduran cocoa. The company manages the complete supply chain from direct farmer partnerships through quality control and international shipping, with a focus on sustainable agroforestry cultivation methods.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Trinitario Fine Cocoa Beans Premium Trinitario variety cocoa beans (hybrid of Criollo and Forastero) sourced directly from over 2,500 smallholder Honduran farmers through cooperative partnerships, with full supply chain management from purchasing through fermentation, drying, quality control, and international shipping. 50% of supply is dual-certified organic and Fairtrade.
• Single Origin Honduras Chocolate Fairtrade and organic certified chocolate bars produced in Switzerland using Trinitario fine cocoa beans sourced exclusively from Chocolats Halba Honduras. Sold through Coop Switzerland supermarkets and recognized with International Chocolate Awards.

Quantifiable outcome

• 1300+ farmers currently benefiting, with goal to reach 2000 farmers by 2021
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• PUR ProjetmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011French company PUR Projet collaborates with Chocolats Halba on reforestation projects in Olancho region. Smallholder farmers plant timber trees in and around cocoa plantations for climate protection. Since 2011, 238,849 trees have been planted for reforestation, certified to Gold Standard.
• RikoltocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Rikolto (international NGO focused on sustainable food chains) for development projects including Fortaleciendo la Cadena de Valor de Cacao de Calidad in Olancho, and conducting pilots of Dynamic Agroforestry Systems (DAF) studies. Rikolto and Chocolats Halba jointly implement the GESCON project for knowledge management in Central American cocoa value chain.
• Helvetas HondurascoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Helvetas Honduras on the Fortaleciendo la Cadena de Valor de Cacao de Calidad project in Olancho department, supporting quality improvement and sustainable cultivation among cocoa farmers.
• World Cocoa FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorld Cocoa Foundation participates in the GESCON project (Gestión de Conocimiento) for knowledge management in the cocoa value chain across Central America, working with Rikolto and COSUDE.
• PROCACAHO ProgramcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPROCACAHO is a program in northern Honduras where Chocolats Halba works with producer organizations, providing monitoring, information, and COVID prevention equipment supply. Jointly conducts DAF study pilots with Rikolto and Chocolats Halba.
• PRAWANKA ProgramminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPRAWANKA program operates in Mosquitia region of Honduras, where Chocolats Halba provides cocoa sector support and development assistance to producer organizations.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• ECOM Trading: One of the world's largest cocoa traders and processors, sourcing from multiple origins with sustainability programs. Comparable in cocoa export operations and B2B supply to manufacturers, but at massively greater scale.
• Olam Food Ingredients (ofi): Major global cocoa sourcing and processing business (spun out of Olam) operating at scale across multiple origins with sustainability programs like AtSource. Comparable B2B cocoa supply to manufacturers with sustainability positioning.
• Cacao Barry (Barry Callebaut): Premium chocolate couverture brand of Barry Callebaut, the world's largest chocolate manufacturer, sourcing fine cocoa from multiple origins globally. Overlaps in fine-flavor cocoa supply and B2B chocolate manufacturer customer base, but operates at vastly larger scale.
• Cargill Cocoa: Global cocoa sourcing and processing arm of Cargill, with sustainability programs like Cocoa Promise. Comparable B2B cocoa supplier to chocolate manufacturers but with vastly broader geographic and volume scale.

Direct peers

• Original Beans: Premium single-origin chocolate company that sources fine cacao directly from farmers using agroforestry and conservation programs. Highly comparable operating model: traceable single-origin cocoa, climate-positive sourcing, and direct cooperative relationships.
• Conacado: Dominican Republic cocoa cooperative federation exporting organic and fine-flavor cocoa from smallholder farmers to global chocolate makers. Closest geographic and structural peer - cooperative-based cocoa exporter with organic/fairtrade certification.
• Tony's Chocolonely: Ethical chocolate brand that sources cocoa directly from West African cooperatives with full traceability and premium farmer pricing. Directly comparable mission: direct-trade cocoa sourcing with social impact focus and B2B ingredient supply.
• Divine Chocolate: Fairtrade chocolate brand owned by cocoa farmer cooperatives in Ghana, emphasizing ethical sourcing and farmer ownership. Directly comparable in fairtrade certification model and cooperative partnership structure.
• Beyond Good: Direct-trade single-origin chocolate company sourcing fine cocoa from Madagascar and other origins through farmer partnerships. Comparable direct-sourcing, single-origin premium positioning and smallholder farmer relationships.

Regional players

• Pablo y Gustavo / Duyvis (parent brand): Not directly comparable. Omitted due to lack of strong fit.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fundaci%C3%B3n-chocolats-halba

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Fundación Chocolats Halba