bake - March/April 2024 - 36

chocolate & decorating
New Capabilities
Luker Chocolate, Colombian B4B (business-for-business) chocolate
manufacturer and leader in sustainability, announced today
the unveiling of several new capabilities at Expo West 2024
in March. The sustainable chocolate leader shared additional impact
data, offering a deeper insight into Luker's sustainability
efforts through The Chocolate Dream.
Luker Chocolate offered booth visitors the opportunity to be
among the first to check out Luker's newest capabilities including
dairy-free offerings, protein chocolate, and organic chocolate
all of which align with Luker's longstanding commitment to
crafting at origin and using Fino de Aroma Cocoa. Attendees
also learned more about the recent sustainability impact data.
" Luker has been built on human connection, sustainability, and
innovation as evidenced by the new offerings we are debuting
at Expo West, " says Camilo Romero, chief executive officer at
Luker Chocolate. " We look forward to seeing 2024 unfold and
remain committed to the goal of helping all stakeholders in cocoa
production to work towards more profitable cocoa farms
and more sustainable production methods. "
Luker has continued to innovate new products and customer
offerings over the past several decades to stay ahead of the
competition and stay in tune with what consumers want. In addition
to their expanded private label capabilities, some of Luker's
newest offerings include:
New Protein Chocolate: Luker's newest product is a 44% dark
chocolate formulated with pea protein that contains 5g of protein
in a 25g serving of chocolate.
Dairy-Free Oat M!lk Chocolate: Luker is putting a plant-based
twist on their current chocolate offerings with a dairy-free.
Organic Chocolate: Luker sources organic cocoa from areas
where it implements the company's The Chocolate Dream sustainability
plan, focusing on healthy cocoa growth without relying
on daily chemical inputs. Luker's organic dark chocolate is
now available in 72%, 70%, 58%, and 54%.
Sustainability report findings
Luker goes beyond conventional sustainability standards, aiming
for a truly transformative impact. To consistently create
sustainable products and maintain a transparent supply chain
and mutually beneficial farmer relationships, in late 2023 Luker
conducted a sustainability audit to find areas of progress within
their sustainability efforts companywide.
Some new goals for the company based on report findings
include:
36 < MAR-APR 2024 | bakemag.com
Luker plans to increase 1,500 cocoa farmers' income by 20%
by 2027 and improve the social well-being and quality of life for
5,000 families by that time as well.
The chocolate pioneer is encouraging environmentally positive
practices across yf9,000 hectares of land with a keen focus
on sustainability, biodiversity enhancement, water conservation,
and forest protection by 2027.
Working toward their Net Zero goal, Luker has a goal of reaching
a reduction of 28% in carbon emissions in the energy and
industrial emissions space, compared to Luker's baseline year
of 2021.
Some key sustainability findings include:
Luker maintains a passionate position when it comes to keeping
farmer relationships mutually beneficial. To that end, the
chocolate supplier found that in 2023, 1.058 cocoa families saw
an increase in income (through entrepreneurship, income diversification,
and productivity enhancement projects) and 3.933
families saw an overall improved quality of life.
Throughout 2023, Luker encouraged environmentally friendly
practices across 11,945 hectares of land with a focus on sustainability,
enhancing biodiversity, water conservation, and forest
protection. The sustainability report found that in 2023, Luker
saw a 20% reduction in direct carbon emissions.
Luker Chocolate, a family-owned company with more than 115
years of experience, is focused on sustainability and innovation.
LUKER CHOCOLATE
http://www.bakemag.com
bake - March/April 2024

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