Ecotop trained 21 farmer trainers in Dynamic Agroforestry Systems (DAF) in Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast, on behalf of the IDH-Biopartenaire-Barry Callebaut Project. Trainers installed DAF plots on their own farms after a three-day workshop. Each trainer will now assist at least 30 neighboring farmers.
The Ivory Coast produced over 1.5 million tons of cocoa in 2011, making it the world’s top producer. However, productivity per hectare dropped from 700 kg/ha in 2000 to 611 kg/ha in 2009. Full-sun monoculture, poor management, and rising pest pressure threaten to collapse cocoa production.
Farmers face mounting problems beyond cocoa. Staple crops like yams, manioc, maize, and peanuts now compete with cocoa for land. Farm sizes shrink as inheritance divides properties across generations. Continuous export of firewood and charcoal strips energy from the soil.
Vast areas of primary forest have converted into savannah in recent decades. Farmers report erratic rainfall and growing drought risk. Mineral fertilizers cannot fix soil erosion, and pesticides cannot solve rising pest and disease problems.
The report identifies cocoa as a forest understory species suited to shade and high biodiversity. Some cocoa plantations over 80 years old remain healthy and productive under forest-like conditions. Dynamic Agroforestry Systems replicate this structure by stratifying tree canopies and adding organic matter through pruning.
The report recommends a system-level approach over short-term yield maximization. It proposes layering rubber, fruit trees, and oil palm above cocoa to diversify income and canopy structure. Selective weeding, grafting of unproductive trees, and burn-free land clearing round out the proposed practices.
The project aims to improve productivity for at least 1,000 smallholder farmers through this approach. The report frames this as a potential starting point for broader agricultural reform in the region.
