Nestlé has claimed to have developed a method to cut waste and boost yields for farmers from the processing of cacao fruits used to make chocolate.
The maker of KitKat and Aero chocolate said Nestlé’s “novel patented technique” uses up to 30% more of the fruit than has traditionally been the case, a method that “minimises waste but also helps farmers get more yield as well as value from their cocoa harvests”.
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Chocolate is produced from the cacao beans found in the tree-borne fruit of the same name, commonly grown and harvested in Central and South American countries but also in west Africa. The fruit’s husks and pulp have generally been discarded, although value-added uses by companies such as Nestlé and Mondelez International have been tested.
“Recognising the untapped potential of these under-utilised parts of the cocoa fruit, Nestlé’s R&D experts developed a patented technique that leverages all parts of the fruit inside the cocoa pod,” the world’s largest food company explained in a statement.
“In this novel, simplified method, everything inside the pod is collected as a wet mass, which ferments naturally, unlocking the key chocolate flavour. The mass is then ground, roasted and dried into chocolate flakes, which can be used to make chocolate without compromising the taste.”
While Nestlé emphasised the benefits to cocoa farmers from its newly developed technique, the Swiss giant made no mention of the impact it might have on lowering production costs and ultimately the consumer.
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By GlobalDataNestlé and other global sweets manufacturers have been raising shelf prices of late to help offset historically high cocoa prices.
“With climate change increasingly affecting cocoa yields around the world, we are exploring innovative solutions that could help cocoa farmers maximise the potential of their harvests,” Louise Barrett, the head of Nestlé’s R&D centre for confectionery in the UK, said.
“This groundbreaking technique utilises more of the fruit, while enabling us to provide delicious chocolate to our consumers. While this project is still at a pilot stage, we are currently exploring how to apply this innovation at a larger scale.”
Cocoa prices reached record-high levels in December due to poor harvests in some of the growing regions. While they have since come off those highs, cocoa prices remain historically elevated amid uncertainty for the 2025/26 crop.
Marley Robinson, an analyst at Just Food’s parent company GlobalData, suggested recently cocoa prices could bounce back up to last year’s unprecedented levels if there’s another poor harvest.
“Pod counters in the Ivory Coast have suggested that the upcoming 2025/26 season will see a 10% decline in output. These forecasts are based on elevated mortality rates of flowers and cherelles (young pods), which have occurred despite supportive weather conditions,” Marley said.
Reporting first-half results in July, Nestlé said it had taken “actions to address input-cost inflation in coffee and cocoa-related categories” – namely pricing of 2.7% for the group and 10.6% for confectionery.
The gross margin was also affected, falling 60 basis points to 46.6%, “primarily driven by the impact of higher coffee and cocoa prices on cost of goods sold, which were not fully compensated by price increases”, Nestlé said at the time.
It was a similar picture in 2024, when Nestlé took pricing actions to offset the higher input costs, with cocoa and coffee prices having an impact on the gross margin in the back half of that year.
Revealing its new processing technique, Nestlé said: “With more efficient cocoa extraction, farmers could have more time to focus on good agricultural practices such as pruning, which has been demonstrated to improve yields.”
