Barry Callebaut has signed a long-term commercial agreement with German food-tech firm Planet A Foods, the developer of ChoViva, a cocoa-free chocolate alternative.
The Swiss cocoa processor and chocolate maker said the collaboration is intended to address rising demand for more sustainable chocolate options while keeping its core focus on conventional cocoa-based products.
The move also aligns with its strategy to diversify amid persistent cocoa market volatility, underpinned by research and development efforts centred on innovation and new taste profiles.
Barry Callebaut global strategy head Christian Hansen said: “Through this partnership with Planet A Foods, Barry Callebaut is embracing technology to open further avenues for growth while enhancing our resiliency to today’s cocoa-market volatility.
“We are excited about the collaboration with Planet A Foods to shape the future of chocolate solutions together with our customers.”
According to the press statement, ChoViva is made using locally available ingredients, including sunflower seeds, to deliver a chocolate-like experience without cocoa.
By utilising locally sourced ingredients, the product is designed to shorten supply chains and lessen environmental impact, which the companies say supports Barry Callebaut’s wider sustainability objectives.
For Planet A Foods, the collaboration marks a step toward expanding its global footprint and enhancing its ingredient technology platform.
Both companies said they plan to strengthen their presence in Europe and extend their reach to international markets to make sustainable food ingredients more widely accessible.
Planet A Foods CEO and co-founder Maximilian Marquart added: “Our goal has always been to scale ChoViva into a global ingredient platform – and this equal partnership helps us do just that. By combining Barry Callebaut’s global footprint and capabilities with our innovation, we can scale responsibly and bring more products to markets worldwide, faster than ever.”
In a separate development related to cocoa, in May this year Ardent Mills introduced Cocoa Replace, a wheat-based solution designed to address ingredient volatility in the food manufacturing sector.
It was positioned as a clean-label alternative to cocoa powder that could replace up to 25% of cocoa in baked goods such as cakes, brownies, cookies, and muffins.
