Ransiki

from Ransiki, Indonesia

Located on the eastern side of West Papua near the town of Manokwari, Ransiki is a small village with an interesting history. What started as a massive corporate farm has transformed into an independent project, driving income and entrepreneurship in the surrounding community. Indonesia is an incredibly diverse country both in terms of its people and culture, and its nature. In March 2019, the Indonesian government established West Papua as Indonesia’s first Conservation Province. Legislation protects the marine and terrestrial ecosystems, promotes sustainable jobs, and recognizes the rights of the region’s indigenous people.

In 1979, the British Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC) created a farm of almost 1,800 hectares in Ransiki. At its peak, the farm covered around 1,785 hectares of land and produced over 2,000 tonnes of cocoa. However, after a series of ownership changes and lack of investment, the farm was significantly downsized. In 2017 the cocoa cooperative Eiber Suth — which translates to “Unity to Arise” — was established, and currently employs around 200 local Papuans. They’ve rehabilitated approximately 200 of the original farm's 1,785 hectares, and plan to tackle another 1,000 hectares as resources are available.

We were first introduced to Ransiki in 2019 by Dejan Borisavljevic of Biji Kakao Trading. Dejan works with Indonesian cocoa producers to bring their beans to makers around the globe. Indonesia is known as one of the largest cocoa producers in the world; we are privileged to work with this tiny corner of the country, where Eiber Suth are focused on rehabilitating land, bringing income to the community, and producing some tasty cocoa.