Chocolats Halba facts for kids

Chocolats Halba is a Swiss company that makes delicious chocolate. It is located in Pratteln, a town in Switzerland.

Chocolats Halba is part of a bigger company called Coop. Every year, they turn about 20,000 tons of chocolate into many treats. These include chocolate bars, fancy pralines, and fun Easter bunnies.

About 40% of their chocolate goes to the Coop Group. The rest is sold to other customers all over the world. You can find their chocolate in countries like Germany, France, the USA, Canada, and China. Besides making chocolate for Coop's own brands, they also produce for other companies. One example is "Die Gute Schokolade" (The Good Chocolate) by Plant-for-the-Planet.

In 2022, Chocolats Halba made sales of 285 million Swiss Francs. A big part of their sales, about 90%, comes from products with special sustainability labels. These labels show that the chocolate is made in a way that is good for the planet and people.

About 73% of their sales are from products with labels like Fairtrade Max Havelaar, Bio Suisse, USDA Organic, and UTZ. These labels mean the chocolate is made fairly and often organically.

How Chocolats Halba Started

Chocolats Halba began on May 5, 1933. It was founded in Zurich, Switzerland, by two people: Willy Hallheimer and Werner Baer. At first, they started making chocolate in Baer's apartment with just four employees.

In 1955, the company moved to a new place in Wallisellen. Chocolats Halba started making chocolate for Coop in 1960. Later, in 1968, Coop bought a part of Halba. By 1972, Coop owned the entire company.

In 2003, the company officially changed its name to Chocolats Halba. Since 2004, it has been a special part, or "division," of the Coop Group.

In 2013, Chocolats Halba opened its first branch in another country. This was Chocolats Halba Honduras AG, located in a developing country. Since the summer of 2014, Chocolats Halba has only bought Fair trade-certified cocoa beans. This means the farmers who grow the cocoa get a fair price for their hard work.

In 2017, Chocolats Halba moved to a brand new factory in Pratteln. This modern factory can produce 15,000 tons of chocolate each year. The older factories in Wallisellen and Hinwil were closed.

Working for a Better World

Chocolats Halba works hard to make chocolate in a way that helps people and the environment.

Awards for Good Work

Chocolats Halba has received special awards for its efforts. In April 2017, they were recognized for making chocolate bunnies that were good for the environment and society.

On April 28, 2018, Chocolats Halba won the Swiss Ethics Award. This award was for their project called "Sustainable Chocolate from Ecuador." This project works with Coop to achieve several important goals. It aims to improve the lives of farmers. It also helps protect biodiversity, which means keeping many different plants and animals safe. The project also supports and encourages young farmers.

Helping Farmers and Forests

Chocolats Halba works with Fairtrade Africa on an important project. This project helps fight against the cutting down of forests in West Africa. They support 2,500 farmers in changing how they grow cocoa. Instead of growing only cocoa, farmers learn to grow many different crops together. This helps the environment and makes their farms stronger.

Chocolats Halba also works with a group called Plant-for-the-Planet. This group helps children and young people plant trees. Together, they make "good chocolate." Chocolats Halba does not make any profit from this special chocolate. Instead, all the money earned goes to projects that plant trees in Mexico.

See also

• Swiss chocolate