Latest news with #cocoa
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Chelsea Champions League winner stuns fans by revealing surprise new business
Salomon Kalou tasted sweet success at Chelsea, winning the Champions League, Premier League, the League Cup and four FA Cups and now the former forward is venturing into the chocolate business. The Ivorian scored 60 goals in his six seasons at Stamford Bridge during the trophy-laden Roman Abramovich era, finishing his career in west London on a high by lifting the European Cup after the Blues' 2012 triumph over Bayern Munich at the German club's home stadium. And rather than pursue a career on punditry or coaching — like his former team-mates Frank Lampard and John Terry — Kalou is looking to make a splash in the confectionery market. The brand is called Oume, named after his birthplace, with Kalou keen to emphasise the importance of his homeland in the chocolate world. The Ivory Coast produces 45 per cent of the world's cocoa, chocolate's key ingredient. 'My uncle had a cocoa farm and I grew up around the farm and between school and at the weekend we would be helping him,' Kalou told The Telegraph. 'Growing up, I don't remember eating chocolate and didn't know what it was. It's expensive. It's more of a privilege, for people who can afford to buy it because it is expensive. 'People don't know what they make in their farms is for chocolate. But we have a big percentage of the production. We also have great footballers. 'To make a comparison between the two, a product can come out of Ivory Coast and go global. A footballer can be born in Oume and come to Chelsea and win the Champions League, can be global.' Kalou is keen to promote Oume as a luxury brand, branching his cocoa out into other products and hopes to one day see his chocolate in some of the UK's most prestigious shops. 'One day I'd like to see Oume in Waitrose, Selfridges, or Harrods. That would be a proud moment. 'It is a tough market with the price of cocoa increasing due to extreme weather and under-investment.' Kalou, who also enjoyed spells at Lille, Hertha Berlin and Feyenoord, won the Africa Cup of Nations in 2015 and is only behind Didier Drogba (63) with 24 goals for his country.
Globe and Mail
a day ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Innovation still takes centre stage in an unpredictable economy
Soaring cocoa prices have forced Isabelle Lam to rethink her business. The co-founder of Remix Snacks, known for its bean-based chocolate bark, saw costs spike by 50 per cent last year – a jolt that prompted her to examine the key ingredient that helped launch the brand in 2018. 'It forced us to look back instead of looking ahead at how we can expand,' says Ms. Lam, a registered dietitian who founded the company in Montreal. Considerations included the type of chocolate she uses and how she sources her ingredients. 'It's not so much impact innovation but asking how we can streamline things to make (the company) the most efficient it can be.' Remix's bean bark is a high-protein, high-fibre snack made with upcycled imperfect fruit, black beans and 70-per-cent dark chocolate – a concept Ms. Lam and co-founder Jamie Lee developed while studying nutrition at McGill University. Combining beans and chocolate into a nutritious snack helped the pair break into a highly competitive market. When cocoa prices more than doubled in 2024, and inflation changed how consumers spent their money, Ms. Lam had to adapt. Business leaders across sectors increasingly view innovation not only as a response to short-term shocks, but as a long-term strategy for staying competitive in a rapidly changing world. Research by McKinsey & Co. has identified the ability to innovate as one of the top three sources of competitive advantage across industries. Ms. Lam keeps innovation front and centre by staying aligned with the mission that inspired Remix Snacks in the first place: promoting nutrition and reducing food waste. In October, 2024, she made the difficult decision to raise prices, and to look for other ways to innovate. 'There's a reason why so many people are trying to get into the industry,' Ms. Lam says. 'We're not happy with where things are, and there's so much room for growth. It's important to keep that in the forefront.' That mindset is echoed in other sectors, where companies are similarly reassessing how they work. 'A vision is what motivates people across the board,' says Peter Josty, executive director of the Centre for Innovation Studies (THECIS), a Calgary-based non-profit that researches innovation. 'Building a culture that motivates people and responds well to failure is an essential part of innovation.' Building that culture isn't always easy, especially in uncertain times. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses were focused solely on survival. According to Statistics Canada, Canada's innovation rate – the proportion of businesses that introduced product or business process innovations – dropped nearly eight percentage points between 2020 and 2022, when compared with the 2017-2019 period. Some leaders see volatility as the best time to think differently. Margot Sunter is the chief innovation officer at GGFL, an Ottawa-based accounting and advisory firm. Her role involves creating an environment where people are willing to experiment. She says uncertainty is exactly the time when business leaders should be thinking about innovation. 'To be truly innovative, there has to be a level of discomfort and risk-taking,' Ms. Sunter says. 'We learn more from making mistakes than we do from getting it right.' While accounting is typically seen as a risk-averse industry, Ms. Sunter says firms such as hers must adapt to two converging pressures: a shortage of chartered professional accountants (CPAs) and the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), which is reshaping client expectations. That requires a rethink of what tasks CPAs need to perform – and what can be done by others. 'We have a really busy firm, and our accountants don't have time to drive those conversations forward,' she says. The firm created her role to make sure someone is dedicating time to keeping pace with change. 'For me, every change is an opportunity for innovation.' For example, when an employee leaves, stop to ask if you really need someone in that role or if there is a different way to do the work. 'We're not doing earth-shattering things, but we're really understanding what each person on the team brings and what our clients care about,' Ms. Sunter says. 'Change happens in lots of small ways, and it builds momentum.' Not all innovation needs to be groundbreaking. THECIS's Mr. Josty calls innovation a spectrum, with incremental changes on one end and general-purpose technologies, such as steam power and electricity, on the other. Companies can benefit at any point along that spectrum. But as the World Economic Forum warns that AI breakthroughs are ushering in a 'fourth industrial revolution,' Mr. Josty says companies need to adapt and innovate to compete. 'Change is the new constant,' says GGFL's Ms. Sunter. 'We can be part of it and help decide where to go.'
The Sun
a day ago
- Business
- The Sun
Chelsea Champions League winner Salomon Kalou reveals surprising new business after retirement from football
EX-CHELSEA forward Salomon Kalou, 39, has stunned fans by revealing his new venture - running a chocolate business. The former Ivory Coast international, best known for helping the Blues lift the Champions League in 2012, has traded boots for sweet treats. 3 3 3 His brand is called Oume, named after his birthplace in the Ivory Coast with Kalou keen to emphasise the importance of his homeland in the chocolate world. He told The Telegraph in an interview: " My uncle had a cocoa farm, and I grew up around the farm. "We went to school and at the weekend we would be helping him. "Growing up, I don't remember eating chocolate and didn't know what it was. "It was expensive more of a privilege for people who can afford to buy it. "People don't know that what they produce on their farms is used for chocolate. "But we (Ivory Coast) contribute a big percentage of the world's production. We also have great footballers." The surprise career move has raised a few eyebrows among fans who remember the pacy winger's dazzling runs down the Stamford Bridge flanks - not cocoa beans and hand-tempered truffles. Kalou, who also enjoyed spells at Lille, Hertha Berlin and Botafogo, says he hopes to one day see his chocolate in some of the UK's most prestigious shops. From embarrassing Chelsea pal to interview with dad - Five times Cole Palmer stole show AFTER Conference League finals "It is a tough market with the price of cocoa increasing due to extreme weather and under-investment.' The Ivorian started and won the Champions League final with Chelsea in 2012, making a total of 254 appearances for the Blues.
Wall Street Journal
5 days ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Soaring Costs Expose a Trans-Atlantic Chocolate Divide
Almost everyone loves chocolate, whether it's a Hershey's Kiss, a Toblerone or a dark Lindt bar. But a historic surge in cocoa prices is testing just how deep that love really runs. And it turns out Europeans may be a bit more committed to chocolate than their American counterparts. That gap in loyalty has real implications for global confectionary companies.
The Sun
5 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Customer fury as UK's favourite chocolate's £1.40 multipack shrinks meaning it's cheaper to buy a single 30p bar
PACKS of Freddos have shrunk from five to four — making the family favourites cheaper to buy individually. The new smaller multipacks still cost £1.40 at Tesco, meaning the price of each chocolate bar has gone from 28p to 35p. Meanwhile, single ones cost about 30p. 2 Experts have blamed the move — equivalent to a 25 per cent price increase — on the soaring cost of cocoa. But customers on the Tesco website said it was just another example of shrinkflation. One wrote: 'A single Freddo is 30p and pack of Freddos used to be a 5 pack but now a 4 pack is £1.40. "Make it make sense.' Another said: 'Cheaper to buy 4 bars separately, used to get 5 bars at this price.' Tesco and Waitrose are the first to stock the new packs, with Waitrose offering them for a promotional price of £1, down from £1.80. Other supermarkets still have the five-packs in stock. energy and transport. Susannah Streeter, of investment company Hargreaves Lansdown, said: 'The sharp rise in the cost of cocoa, which is such a crucial ingredient, has caused a big headache for chocolate manufacturers. 'They have also had to absorb higher energy costs and wage growth. People are only just realising why Dairy Milk chocolate and Freddos taste different - and they're saying one is MUCH tastier 'But producers know consumers will not swallow much bigger increases. "Though wholesale prices have come down slightly, they remain triple the price compared to two years ago. 'So, reducing the numbers of bars in packs or the weight of individual products is the strategy they are deploying.' Harvir Dhillon, economist at the British Retail Consortium, said: ' Chocolate prices, which are largely decided by large manufacturers, have been hit hard by global cocoa prices. 'The cost of cocoa has been badly affected by poor harvests in parts of Africa.'
