Antonie Fountain from Voice Network will attend the World Confectionery Conference 2024

The Executive Director of cocoa industry organization Voice Network, Antonie Fountain, is the latest industry expert to join our 2024 edition of the World Confectionery Conference this autumn.

A key advocate of reforms to combat the pressing human rights issue of child labour and improve wages and working conditions for farmers, he will participate in our Q&A session on sustainability at our must-attend event on 12 September in Brussels, Belgium.

Planning for the show is progressing apace and our programme for the show is almost finalised, which includes keynote presentations from Caobisco, the European Confectionery Association, Ferrero, Cargill, Tony’s Chocolonely, Mintel Global Insights and research group FMCG Gurus, as well as a wide range of contributors from the core areas of equipment, ingredients, finished products and supply chains for the international sector.

Early bird pricing for our event celebrating the 90th anniversary of our title has also been extended to July 15, so be sure to register for the show through our dedicated website at confectioneryconference.com, which is also where our annual industry awards will be presented, recognizing achievements in the areas of prepared foods, sustainability, equipment innovation and emerging companies. As an added bonus, there will be a special Belgian chocolate tasting the day after the main conference, September 13.

Speaking to Confectionery Production at the recent World Cocoa Conference (see our video review here), Antonie Fountain was confident that progress has been made on key sustainability issues such as environmental impact and reducing child labour, but acknowledged that significant challenges still remain.

He said: “When we look at everything that has been said at the conference over the last three days, you get the feeling that sustainability has won the battle of words. Everything important that needed to be said has been said and I think we need to win the battle of action – it’s just a difference in one word but a world of difference. The big challenge now is how we do that but the fact that we have won this battle of words is a big step forward.

On the issue of tackling child labour rates, he added: “The first step in solving a problem is to acknowledge that there is one. So we have to be willing to face the truth and I would say that in the last few years we have started to see really hopeful numbers on child labour. If companies do the right thing, they can reduce child labour by up to 30% through CLMRS (Child Labour Remediation Systems) alone.”

Neill Barston, Editor of Confectionery Production, added: “Having such a passionate sustainability advocate as Antonie join our panel for the World Confectionery Conference 2024 is indeed a very welcome addition to our event and I am sure he will offer some great insights into how to accelerate improvements to the vital supply chains for our confectionery and snack industries.”

The Q&A session has been a notable highlight of our previous events and I am sure this year’s edition will not disappoint in tackling some of the hottest topics and reflecting on the ever-changing issues affecting our sectors, including the upcoming EUDR rules on deforestation, traceability and respect for human rights.”

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