Bean to bar
Lindt & Sprüngli is a chocolate manufacturer that produces its own cocoa mass from the cocoa beans it sources (excluding Russell Stover). This allows us to oversee the production process from the selection and sourcing of cocoa beans to the production of cocoa mass, also known as cocoa liquor, and the finished product – “from bean to bar.”
For more information, see the Traceability page.
The Lindt & Sprüngli bean to bar approach
1. Capture basic data
After harvesting, the cocoa beans are fermented and dried in the country of origin. The farmers participating in the Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program are registrered in a database with their name, farm location, and other basic data.
2. Unique identification
The cocoa beans are packed in bags and clearly labelled (e.g., in Ghana they are tagged with a barcode). This enables our partners who buy and transport the cocoa beans to clearly allocate the beans to the production volume of the Farming Program and trace them back to the first point of purchase registered in the Farming Program.
3. Identity Preserved or Mixed Identity Preserved
For cocoa beans, Lindt & Sprüngli has a traceable supply chain which is considered as "Mixed Identity Preserved" (refer to the Rainforest Alliance definitions) or "Identity Preserved". “Identity Preserved” means our cocoa beans are traceable from the first point of purchase to our factory doors, and must be supplied from registered Farming Program farmers. Read more on our traceability approach in our latest Sustainability Report and find more details on the traceability levels in the Glossary of the report.
4. Quality control
Prior to shipment, while they are still in the port in the country of origin, the cocoa beans undergo quality control. The cocoa beans are loaded into containers which are used solely for transporting beans from the Farming Program.
5. Traceability certificate
Each delivery of cocoa beans is accompanied by a traceability certificate, which is issued in the country of origin and sent to Lindt & Sprüngli when the goods are received. The document records, among other things, the production volumes of the farmers.
6. Quality control
The cocoa beans are transported by ship to the destination ports in Europe and the USA. After arrival, they undergo another quality control. We accept the goods only if they meet our specifications.
7. Cocoa mass factories
The beans are loaded and transported to our own cocoa mass factories in Europe and the USA, which are all certified to the ISO 22000 Food Safety Management standard (excluding Russell Stover). The accompanying traceability certificate gives us precise information on the origin of the cocoa beans and the volume delivered.
8. Mixing of recipies
The delivered cocoa beans are stored in silos and then mixed for the recipes. They are then cleaned through infrared treatment.
9. Steaming of nibs
The cocoa beans are cracked open and the shells removed. The remaining cocoa fragments, known as nibs, undergo further processing and are then steam-cleaned again.
10. Roasting of nibs
The nibs are then roasted, applying a process we have specially developed, with the roasting time and temperature perfectly aligned in order to achieve the desired aroma.
11. Grinding of nibs
Afterwards, the nibs are crushed and then ground in special mills until the cocoa mass has reached the desired particle size.
12. Cocoa mass
The cocoa mass is transported to our production sites.
At this point, the conventional chocolate manufacturing process begins.
13. Mixing with other main ingredients
Other ingredients, such as milk powder and cocoa butter, are added to the cocoa mass and refined into chocolate. We aim to source 100% of our cocoa products including beans, butter, powder, and chocolate mass through the Lindt & Sprüngli Farming Program or other responsible sourcing programs by 2025.
14. Grinding of cocoa mass
The cocoa mass is ground again.
15. Conching
Then comes the important step – conching.
16. Molding or further processing
The chocolate mass is formed or processed further.