Nestlé ITR prioritizes sustainability and outlines key initiatives
The new ‘Breaks for Good’ KitKat aims to connect traveling consumers with the farmers in Nestlé’s ground-breaking income accelerator program
With a focus on sustainability, Global Travel Retail Magazine talks with Aura Sanchez, Nestlé International Travel Retail (NITR) Global Head of Marketing, and Jorge Hadweh Zeidan, NITR Global Head of Sales. They consider Nestlé’s efforts to support cocoa farmers and their families, highlighting key KitKat and recently launched Nestlé Sustainably Sourced Cocoa brands, and how to capture the interest of traveling consumers, particularly the increasingly important Gen Zs.
Global Travel Retail Magazine (GTR Magazine): Please share the latest on Nestlé’s income accelerator program and the full circle moment of introducing the first KitKat made with cocoa sourced from beans grown by families in the program.
Aura Sanchez (Sanchez): Nestlé introduced the first KitKats made with cocoa mass from beans grown by farmer families engaged in the company's income accelerator this year. These KitKats aim to connect consumers with the farmers in Nestlé's program and raise awareness about the sustainability of the cocoa used in the iconic bars.
The innovative program was launched in January 2022 to help close the living income gap of cocoa-farming families and reduce child labor risk. At the same time, it strives to advance better agriculture practices and promote gender equality, empowering women as agents for positive change. The program incentivizes cocoa-farming families that enroll their children in school, implement good agricultural practices, engage in agroforestry activities and diversify their incomes.
Nestlé's income accelerator program has so far supported more than 10,000 families in Côte d'Ivoire and is expanding to Ghana this year to include a total of 30,000 families. By 2030, the program aims to reach an estimated 160,000 cocoa-farming families in Nestlé's global cocoa supply chain to create impact at scale.
Nestlé has collaborated with various partners and suppliers to transform its global cocoa sourcing and achieve full traceability and physical segregation of the cocoa sourced from its income accelerator program. This means being able to track the entire journey of cocoa beans from origin to factory, while keeping them physically separated from other cocoa sources.
The cocoa mass from the income accelerator program adheres to one of the highest traceability standards, ensuring 'mixed identity preserved' traceability, enabling cocoa to be traced and stored separately. In addition, by mid-2024, Nestlé plans to use segregated cocoa butter for all of its KitKat chocolate in Europe, with plans to expand to other regions in the coming years.
GTR Magazine: How will this offering be supported by NITR via KitKat’s ‘Breaks for Good’ initiative?
Sanchez: The new ‘Breaks for Good’ KitKat aims to connect traveling consumers with the farmers in Nestlé’s ground-breaking program. At the same time, it will raise awareness about the sustainability of the cocoa used in the iconic bars.
The KitKat wrapper includes a bold ‘Sustainably Sourced Cocoa’ stamp and a QR code which will direct consumers to further details on the program and its immense impact on the lives of cocoa-farming communities.
Chocolate made with sustainably sourced cocoa will be used in the majority of KitKat products available in European travel retail, including KitKat’s new Destination Packs, KitKat Chunky, Mini Mix and its popular Sharing Bag. The new products are expected to be rolled out over the coming months, with their launch supported by an extensive ‘Breaks for Good’ campaign.
KitKat is a key brand, not just for NITR, but generally in the travel retail confectionery category. KitKat has consistently embraced innovation, centered around its iconic ‘Have a break, Have a KitKat’ tagline, and is now taking a huge step to embrace sustainability. ‘Breaks for Good’ puts cocoa farmers – and Nestlé’s mission for a sustainable future for all involved in the cocoa and chocolate production chain – at the center of its products. And, of course, to the center of the confectionery category in travel retail.
The new Nestlé Sustainably Sourced Cocoa line is exclusive to travel retail
GTR Magazine: Can you give us an update on the launch of Nestlé’s travel retail exclusive Sustainably Sourced Cocoa. What plans are in place for the brand’s continued global rollout this summer?
Sanchez: Nestlé Sustainably Sourced Cocoa showcases Nestlé’s work over the past 15 years in major cocoa-growing regions via the Nestlé Cocoa Plan. It combines those efforts with almost 150 years of Swiss chocolate making expertise in a product which “does good and tastes good.”
Nestlé Sustainably Sourced Cocoa was officially launched in April 2024 and is already available at selected travel retail locations. The range is exclusive to the channel and as the name suggests, its focus is on sustainability. These two factors – exclusivity and sustainability – will set NITR, the confectionery category, and industry in general, apart in the future. It is tailor-made to suit the demands of the increasingly important Gen Z travelers who are seeking something different, something that lives up to its name. At the same time, it appeals to all chocolate lovers.
We are very pleased to see the positive response from the trade on this launch as we know sustainability is a big topic for airports, brands and consumers and we are very happy we can deliver on this need.
Promotional activities commenced at Porto Airport in April followed by Singapore Changi and Geneva airports in May. Additional locations will follow throughout the year including at Delhi Indira Gandhi International, Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International, London Heathrow and London Gatwick airports, as well as select airports in Greece.
Our main objective for year one is to boost distribution, execute with excellence in-store and connect with confectionery shoppers via our brand campaign “Does Good, Tastes Great.”
GTR Magazine: Please elaborate on the Nestlé Sustainably Sourced campaign, with storytelling at its core.
Sanchez: The campaign will be activated across various touchpoints: in-store, online, via retailers’ websites, airport screens and across relevant retailer social media.
The Nestlé Sustainably Sourced campaign will be disruptive and engaging, featuring free-standing, shelf and counter-top units and including sampling. Customers will be able to personalize Nestlé Sustainably Sourced 170g and 280g tablets through adding names or messages on product sleeves. At the same time, campaign visuals encourage customers to discover how Nestlé is helping to improve cocoa families’ livelihoods through the Nestle Cocoa Plan and its major collaboration with Rain Forest Alliance.
Nestlé Sustainably Sourced will also be a strong feature of NITR’s new ‘Together We Grow’ platform which aims to help its retailer partners accelerate sustainable programs. Like the new chocolate line, ‘Together We Grow’ is exclusive to travel retail.
Nestlé Sustainably Sourced Cocoa will drive incremental sales by attracting the fastest growing consumer segments – notably Gen Z – into confectionery.
GTR Magazine: Considering the wealth of information, the depth of its brand story and the impact of sales staff in the channel, how does Nestlé ensure that representatives are educated and updated accordingly?
Jorge Hadweh Zeidan: In Q2 and Q3, we are running global training, online and local (during our trade visits) for brand ambassadors, promoters and personal staff. We will reach around 250 people worldwide. This training is comprised of: brand identity key points, key selling points, key differentiators (emotional and functional), portfolio descriptions and images, sustainability credentials, planograms and executional guidelines.
Promotions for Nestlé Sustainably Sourced started at Singapore Changi Airport in May
“Does Good, Tastes Great”: Nestlé Sustainably Sourced features at Geneva Airport
