Tony’s Chocolonely has announced it has raised an additional €20 million of capital from its existing shareholders to accelerate the delivery of its 'mission.'
The Dutch confectionery company said the money will be used to fund its rapid growth in multiple markets, as well as the growth of Tony’s Open Chain (its business-to-business ethical bean sourcing company).
Tony’s Chocolonely said that its efforts to fight exploitation in the cocoa supply chain is having a positive impact on the lives of cocoa farmers.
Funding Round
As part of this funding round, a few existing shareholders will sell a small percentage of their stake, the group said.
The full funding round is subject to regulatory approval in the Netherlands.
'Ending Exploitation'
"The funding will be used to support the rapid global growth we are delivering in both Tony’s Chocolonely, our chocolate business, and Tony’s Open Chain, our global business-to-business ethical bean trading company," said Douglas Lamont, chief executive, Tony's Chocolonely.
"I am delighted that all the funding was raised from within our existing shareholder base, who we know are all committed to supporting our long-term mission."
Lamont added that with the new investment, its governance structure, and its "recently introduced Mission Lock, we will all remain fully focused and committed to delivering on our mission to end exploitation in the cocoa industry.”
Partnership
Last September, Tony's Chocolonely teamed up with Ben & Jerry's on an initiative to end modern slavery and child labour in the chocolate supply chain.
In January 2023, the two firms launched Chocolatey Love A-Fair, a new Ben & Jerry's ice cream flavour based on the Tony's Chocolonely milk caramel sea salt bar.
© 2023 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest A-Brands news. Article by Robert McHugh. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
