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Read about the latest developments across the business, including our global sustainability initiatives.
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Olam opened its first business in Côte d’Ivoire in 1994. Today, some 2 million people across the country earn part, or all, of their livelihoods with Olam as farmers, staff, service providers and their dependents.
We operate throughout the country, sourcing cocoa, coffee, cotton, cashew, and rubber directly from over 185,000 farming families, and via a vast network of local traders. Olam operates 36 offices, runs 11 large processing facilities, several primary processing operations and manages 200,000 square metres of committed warehousing spaces across the country.
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Our major investments include:
- State-of-the-art cocoa processing factories in Abidjan and San Pedro turning cocoa beans into cocoa liquor, butter, and cake;
- Cashew processing plants in Bouaké, Dimbokro and Djekanou, providing jobs to more than 4,000 workers of whom more than 70% are women;
- 2 rubber factories in Aniassué, in the east of Côte d’Ivoire, and PK38 near Abidjan ushering in new development and generating valuable employment in the region;
- Cotton ginning facilities in Ouangolodougou and Ferkessédougou in the north of the country.
Olam as an Employer
Olam is one of the largest employers in the country, with over 5,000 employees, including sub-contracted workers. More than 90% are Ivorian and 45% are women. We partner with top schools and universities and professional associations to attract the best talent and integrate them into meaningful career paths. Through our programmes such as Growing Olam African Leaders Programme, Graduate Engineering Trainee Programme, Finance Leaders Programme and Leadership Development Programme, high-potential employees receive tailored training and coaching, both in Côte d’Ivoire and abroad, to help them to maximise their potential and enter management roles.
We work closely with government bodies and industry associations such as the Conseil Café Cacao (CCC), Conseil Coton Anacarde (CCA), Confederation Générale des Entreprises de Côte d’Ivoire (CGECI), African Cashew Alliance (ACA), APROCOT-CI (cotton ginners association). We are trusted partners of development agencies, NGOs and programmes, including the ComCashew (formerly African Cashew Initiative) and Competitive African Cotton initiative (COMPACI). This enables us to provide full assurance to our customers of our products’ quality and traceability.
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Meet the Team
We have over 5,000 employees making up our team in the Côte d’Ivoire.
Partheeban Theodore,
Senior Vice President and Country Head, Côte d’Ivoire and SenegalNews, Views and Insights
28th Jan, 2021
Top Employers Institute recognises Olam International for excellence in HR
Company’s operations in Cote d’Ívoire, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa and the Netherlands also separately recognised
Africa
Olam International (Olam), the global food and agri-business, has been recognised by the Top Employers Institute for the first time in 2021 for its excellence in HR practices for the Africa region. The Company’s operations in Cote d’Ívoire, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, as well as the Netherlands, have also separately been awarded for their HR best practices.
The auditing survey from the Top Employers Institute highlighted Olam as excelling in each of the assessment categories, which included people strategy, organisation and change, career, digital HR, work environment, employer branding, talent acquisition and onboarding, performance management, learning, wellbeing, rewards and recognition, diversity and inclusion, and sustainability.
Jaideep Biswas, Regional Head of Human Resources, Africa, Olam International Limited, said,
“People are critical to
21st Aug, 2020
Olam Coffee partners with customers to support vulnerable farmers through COVID-19
In May, Olam Coffee launched a COVID-19 Global Intervention Plan to strengthen its ongoing relief efforts for the world’s worst-affected coffee farming communities.
Securing skilled labour, earning a living and affording usual food and new hygiene supplies are the main challenges being faced by coffee farmers as a result of lockdowns and movement restrictions. All of which are compounding the pre-existing vulnerability of coffee farmers to low prices and climate shocks.
Donations from customers and partners, together with Olam’s contributions, have reached US$449,670 to date, funding food and hygiene packages for over 20,000 coffee households across 12 countries, where farmers are navigating the complexities of harvesting during a pandemic.
Vivek Verma, Managing Director and CEO, Olam Coffee, said,
“We are extremely grateful for the generous support from our customers, namely Lavazza, Nespresso, Caffé Borbone, JM Smuckers, Mother Parkers Tea & Coffee, Strauss, Melitta a
4th May, 2021
Our progress towards tackling deforestation in cocoa
Forests are vital to sustainable cocoa production. Not only do they help to improve biodiversity and mitigate against climate change, they also help to improve cocoa yields and raise farmer incomes. By improving tree cover, cocoa farmers can increase the yields and life expectancy of their cocoa trees and generate additional income from more diverse crops.
The benefits of forest protection and restoration are clear, but we also need to create the right economic incentives. When farmers have struggled to earn a living income from their cocoa smallholdings, they have often resorted to clearing more land. Together with our customers, national governments and NGO partners, we’re working to change that.
We are proud to be a dedicated partner of the Cocoa & Forests Initiative (CFI), a joint initiative between the governments of Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana and leading cocoa and chocolate companies which aims end deforestation in the cocoa supply chain. Today, we’re publishing our Annual CFI
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