Cargill Breaks Ground On 1st Cocoa Processing Facility in Asia

JAKARTA, IndonesiaCargill broke ground today on a $100 million investment to construct its first state-of-the-art cocoa processing facility in Gresik, in the East-Java region of Indonesia. The new facility was necessary to meet the growing demand among customers for cocoa products and to encourage the development of the Asian cocoa sector.

The investment also will strengthen the companys Indonesian cocoa sourcing network and cocoa sustainability activities. The new facility and expanded sourcing operations in Indonesia will complement Cargills global network of cocoa sourcing and processing facilities located in Western Europe, Vietnam, Cameroon, Ghana, Côte dIvoire, Brazil and the United States.

This facility is expected to be operational by mid-2014 and will process approximately 70,000 metric tons of cocoa beans into a broad range of tailored products for customers in the Asian market. The products will include high-quality cocoa liquor and butter, as well as Cargills premium quality Gerkens® cocoa powders.

We are excited to be taking this step to strengthen our cocoa operations on the ground in Indonesia. We have seen a significant growth in demand for cocoa products among our customers across the region. This investment will enable us to support the growth of the local cocoa sector, process local Indonesian beans and provide high-quality cocoa products to serve the growing needs of our customers in Asia," said Jos de Loor, president, Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate.

Cargill will create approximately 200 new jobs in Indonesia, as well as additional positions in its existing R&D application centers in Kuala Lumpur and Beijing, and in the companys commercial network, which it is strengthening to better serve the needs of customers in Asia.

The new facility is part of Cargills growth strategy in Indonesias cocoa sector and one strand of the companys efforts to support long-term sustainable cocoa production globally. Through the Cargill Cocoa Promise, the company is growing and sustaining cocoa farming communities while meeting the growing global demand for sustainable cocoa beans by focusing on three areas: training farmers, supporting farming communities and investing in the long-term sustainable production of cocoa.