By: Fred Yaw Sarpong
The Cocoa Touton Processing Company (CTPC), a subsidiary of
Touton S.A. of France will start operations in Ghana in April, 2015 to process
cocoa bean locally.
Touton signed a bean supply agreement with Ghana Cocoa Board
(COCOBOD) to that effect.
The CTPC is located in the free zones enclave and it has an
initial capacity of 25,000 tonnes, and will eventually expand to about 50,000
tonnes over the next three years.
Also, CTPC is embarking on a programme dubbed ‘Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation’ (REDD+)
which intent to protect the forest in the Western Region of Ghana and increase sustainable
certified cocoa production.
At the signing ceremony held at the Cocoa House in Accra,
Dr. Stephen Kwabena Opuni, Chief Executive of COCOBOD was glad to welcome
another cocoa processing company into the country.
He was hopeful that Cocoa Touton Processing Company Limited
will help add more value to the produce, generate more employment and increase
consumption of cocoa in Ghana and the West African Sub-region.
He commended Mr. Patrick de Boussac for his interest in the
growth of the cocoa industry in Ghana that is touted as the backbone of Ghana’s
economy.
Dr. Opuni called on Touton S.A. to give off their best and
pledged COCOBOD’s maximum support to enable them function as expected.
According to Mr. Patrick de Boussac, Chief Executive of CTPC
Touton S.A. in collaboration with Produce Buying Company (PBC) Limited, a
licensed buying company, sources traceable cocoa from Ghana and was ready to
deepen that.
Mr. de Boussac was grateful to the Government of Ghana and
COCOBOD for the opportunity to operate in the country; and affirmed his
company’s readiness to comply with the Ghana Cocoa Board rules and regulations
governing the operations of cocoa processing companies in Ghana.
He cited Ghana’s consistent production of premium quality
cocoa coupled with a stable business environment and proven democratic record
as reasons for selecting Ghana for the establishment of the cocoa processing
plant.
Touton S.A. has been buying cocoa from Ghana since 1998 at
average volumes of 80,000 and 110,000 tonnes, making it one of the top five
buyers of Ghana cocoa.
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