标准2025过去几年中，随着人们对可可和巧克力需求不断增长，可可农民面临的种种难题亟待解决，以帮助他们改善生计，提高家庭生活水平。为此旨在扶持可可农民实现可持续生产的一系列新标准正处于制定关键期。
全球有大约1400万可可农民和民工，他们主要服务于发达国家消费者的需求。这些农民都生活在赤道附近的国家，通常在小农场工作。 可可生产是劳动密集型产业，但往往产量低，因此可可农民往往入不敷出，生活拮据。
有许多举措可以帮助可可农民的收入实现可持续发展，可可行业一致决定在未来几年中加大可持续性可可的使用。这便需要行业协调标准、统一流程并对可持续性达成一致认可，从而增进行业共识，创造一个公平的竞争环境。
ISO 34101系列标准——“可持续和可追溯的可可豆”（Sustainable and traceable cocoa beans），将对可可豆种植的管理体系要求作出规定，从而实现可持续性生产。它采用了循序渐进方法，具有动态发展计划的特点。该系列标准的第一部分、第二部分和三部分刚刚进入国际标准草案（DIS）阶段，或是公众询问阶段，任何对该标准感兴趣的人都可以对该草案提出意见，在2017年最终标准发布之前都将对提出的意见予以考虑。
该系列标准适用于涉及可可供应链环节的所有人，包括可可农民、可可采购商以及涉及可可行业的其他组织；标准旨在实行良好农业措施、保护环境并改善农民的社会状况和生计。 关键的一点是，这些举措能促使可可种植吸引更多的年轻人，而过去几十年里，可可主要产区的农民平均年龄一直居高不下。
该系列标准是由欧洲标准化委员会的CEN / TC 415 “可持续和可追溯的可可”制定，其秘书处是由ISO的丹麦国家成员-丹麦标准协会（DS）承担；以及ISO / TC 34 / SC 18“可可”承担，该技术委员会是由ISO成员科特迪瓦标准局（CODINORM），加纳标准局（GSA）和荷兰标准化协会（NEN）共同承担。
CEN及ISO两个委员会的主席Jack Steijn指出，新的系列标准将有助于提高全球可可种植业的专业性。
“使用这一系列标准将对可可农民及其家庭生计产生巨大的积极影响，因为这能帮助他们将农场转变为可获取经济利润的企业。
ISO / TC 34 / SC 18副主席Edouard Kouassi N'Guessan强调指出：“可可生产者和可可消费者应该对可持续的可可豆的定义达成一致，以帮助农民获得足够回报。
标准草案由多个利益相关方共同参与制定，包括可可供应链的主要参与者，项目主导方为可可生产国和可可消费国的ISO成员，同时可可行业的大型组织机构也参与其中。 这些组织包括欧洲巧克力饼干糖果协会（CAOBISCO）、欧洲可可协会（ECA）、欧洲联盟食品、农业和旅游业工会(EFFAT)、可可商业联合会(FCC)、国际可可农民组织(ICCFO)、国际可可行动组织(ICI)、全球可持续发展标准联盟（ISEAL Alliance）、禾众基金会（Solidaridad）和世界可可基金会（WCF）。
世界范围内广大组织和政府（其中丹麦外交部表现尤为积极）都大力支持这一议程，促进可可生产国积极参与标准的制定，协助其采用新型管理原则，帮助他们跻身国际可可市场。
该项标准最终版本将在2017年年底公布。
Big step forward for the cocoa sector with new global standards in the pipeline
As the demand for cocoa and chocolate rises, as seen over the last few years, so has the need to address many of the challenges faced by cocoa farmers in order to improve their livelihoods and that of their families. A new series of standards under development that aims to support cocoa farmers to produce sustainably has just reached a crucial stage in its development.
There are around 14 million cocoa farmers and rural workers around the world, largely serving the demands of consumers in developed countries. All of those farmers are living in countries around the equator, typically on smallholder farms. Cocoa production is labour-intensive yet often produces low yields, making it challenging for farmers to be economically viable.
There are a number of initiatives to assist farmers to be sustainable, with much of the cocoa sector agreeing to increase its use of sustainable cocoa over the coming years. This has created the need for harmonized initiatives, uniform procedures and consensus on what sustainability in this sector really means, to improve common understanding and to create a level playing field.
The ISO 34101 series of standards, Sustainable and traceable cocoa beans, will specify requirements for a management system for the farming of cocoa beans, making production more sustainable. It features a dynamic farm development plan, using a stepwise approach. Parts one, two and three of the series have just reached Draft International Standard (DIS) stage, or public enquiry stage, meaning anyone interested can submit feedback on the drafts which will be considered before final publication in 2017.
The series is designed to be used by all those involved in the cocoa supply chain from the farmers to the purchasers of cocoa, to other organizations involved in the sector; and aims to implement good agricultural practices, protect the environment, and improve the social conditions and livelihoods of farmers. All this can make cocoa farming more attractive to young people, which is important as the average age of farmers has risen rapidly in the main cocoa-producing regions over the last few decades.
This series of standards is being developed by the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) under CEN/TC 415, Sustainable and Traceable Cocoa, whose secretariat is held by DS, ISO’s member for Denmark, along with ISO technical committee ISO/TC 34/SC 18, Cocoa, which is jointly managed by ISO members for Côte d’Ivoire (CODINORM), Ghana (GSA) and the Netherlands (NEN).
Jack Steijn, Chair of both committees, said the new series will help to support the professionalism of cocoa farming around the world.
“The use of this series of standards will have a very valuable impact on the livelihoods of cocoa farmers and their families, because it will help them transform their farms into economically viable businesses.”
The Vice-Chair of ISO/TC 34/SC 18, Edouard Kouassi N’Guessan, emphasized: “Cocoa producers and cocoa consumers should reach a common definition for sustainable cocoa beans to facilitate the efforts of farmers to meet the expectations.”
The draft versions were developed in a multi-stakeholder process with input from major players in the cocoa supply chain, with ISO members from cocoa-producing and cocoa-consuming countries leading the project, and with participation and support from large organizations in the sector such as CAOBISCO, European Cocoa Association (ECA), European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism Trade Unions (EFFAT), Federation of Cocoa Commerce (FCC), International CoCoa Farmers Organization (ICCFO), International Cocoa Initiative (ICI), ISEAL Alliance, Solidaridad Network Foundation and World Cocoa Foundation (WCF).
A wide range of organizations and governments, in particular the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, supported the process and facilitated active participation of cocoa-producing countries in the elaboration of the drafts in order to assist them to adopt new management principles and to enhance an easier access to the international market.
Those wishing to purchase or comment on the draft versions can do so by contacting their nationalISO member. The final versions are due to be published at the end of 2017.