Producer Profiles
CONACADO - Coordinadora Nacional Cacaocultores Dominicanos
Founded in 1988 as a response to low global cocoa prices, CONACADO aims to decrease members' dependency on middlemen by exporting their products directly to consumer markets.
CONACADO is a democratically-run cooperative made up of 182 small-scale producer associations from seven regional “blocks” and an estimated 10,040 farmer members, each working on lands averaging 4.3 hectares, or 10.6 acres, in size.
Fair Trade market sales have enabled CONACADO to set up a nursery that supplies low-cost plants to farmers, so they can grow most of their own food. Cocoa accounts for 90 percent of CONACADO's members’ cash income, so becoming Fair Trade Certified™ has made a significant difference in farmers’ lives.
The cooperative also implements a “Cocoa Tour” ecotourism program which teaches international visitors about cocoa farming and the impact of Fair Trade. Farmers are trained as tour guides and members of the cooperative’s Women’s Community Group help with this project. Other women from cocoa-growing families have started small businesses making cocoa wine, jams, bakery goods, chocolate truffles and community crafts which are displayed and sold from a nearby artisan hut. The chocolates and truffle equipment were funded by USAID, the rest by the Fair Trade premium.
Quotable
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My family benefited from a few projects like the renovation of our school and the construction of a water well. We also received clothes, shoes and school grants for our children. ” Nector, CONACADO Member Since 1992
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Ramón Figueroa is a CONACADO member. He has seven children, now adults between the ages of 22 and 32. They have all been able to attend and finish school, with one eventually becoming a professor. Ramón did not have the opportunity to complete his education, but is thankful to have provided one for all his children. ” Ramon Figueroa
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It is a great benefit for women who used to walk five kilometers to the river. ” Felicia Evangelista
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Programs
New Drying Centers, Warehouses and Community Center
By storing members' crops in warehouses and transporting them to markets, CONACADO helps small producers attain higher prices. CONACADO has also helped producers improve the quality of their cocoa by constructing five new fermentation centers, eight drying stations and two central warehouses. The cooperative has also contributed to the construction of the community center and library.
Health Programs
The cooperative invested in a rural health care center when a community’s clinic failed to meet the community’s basic health needs. They also provided free medical assistance and informational sessions on STDs.
Water Aqueduct for Community
In the communities of Rincon Hondo, La Laguna de Coto and La Guazarita, more than 300 families benefited from the installation of a water aqueduct. Before, women here had to walk several kilometers to the river to fetch their water. With six groups of about 20 and 30 workers from these communities, working daily for five months, hammering the roads by hand and walking three hours to river, the water aqueduct was completed.