(Agence Ecofin) – Although Africa supplies the majority of the world’s cocoa, it is not among the leading producers of chocolate globally. To reverse this trend, African entrepreneurs are venturing into the chocolate industry. In Benin, Gounou is standing out in this revolution.
Based in Cotonou, the Gounou brand offers spreads, chocolate bars, and around ten other products made from cocoa and cashew nuts. The company sources its raw materials from nearly 300 local producers in the Ouémé region, ensuring both the purchase of their crops and providing technical support to help them improve production quality. A key feature of its products is the absence of artificial preservatives.
Driven by the desire to support and structure the Beninese cocoa value chain, Moutawakilou Gounou, the founder, decided to venture into transforming cocoa beans into chocolate products, offered in various forms and flavours. His goal is to change consumer habits by offering a local alternative to imported brands. For the company, there is no reason to look elsewhere when the country itself produces cocoa.
Benin’s cocoa bean production is modest, reaching barely 100 tonnes, a far cry from the 1.4 million tonnes produced by neighbouring Côte d’Ivoire, one of the global leaders in cocoa production. The Beninese government has set an ambitious goal: establishing around 50,000 hectares of cocoa plantations to double producers’ incomes. To achieve this, the Investment and Export Promotion Agency gathered in July the club “Les Chocolatiers Engagés,” created by European high-end chocolate industry players and local cocoa sector stakeholders, with the objective of supporting local production and industrial processing.
Gounou is perfectly aligned with the government’s vision to accelerate the industrialisation of the cocoa sector. Moreover, the company contributes to the development of cocoa-producing regions and creates new jobs. Launched in 2018, Gounou quickly gained popularity among Beninese consumers. Its products are sold in supermarkets and major hotels in Cotonou. Due to growing demand, the company has encountered challenges related to its production capacity.
To continue meeting this strong demand and to diversify its products, Gounou entered into a partnership with investment firm M&A Capital in July 2021. Looking ahead, Moutawakilou Gounou aims to make his brand the leading chocolate producer not only in Benin but also across the West African region.