Key points
• The KIT Institute study found that participating households increased cocoa yields by 4%, while yields declined by 16% among comparable households.
• The study also found that the share of women classified as empowered increased by 114% compared with 2022.
• Participating households additionally saw a 190% increase in cocoa income as a result of strong gains in cocoa revenues.
• The findings also point to areas for further progress, notably income diversification and longer-term education outcomes, helping guide the program’s next phase.
A new independent report by the KIT Institute shows that the Nestlé Income Accelerator continues to deliver measurable gains in productivity, women’s empowerment, cocoa income and household resilience. The evaluation covers nearly 2,000 participating households in Côte d’Ivoire assessed during the program’s test-at-scale phase since its launch in 2022.
The KIT Institute report found that participating cocoa-farming households increased cocoa yields by 4% in kilograms per hectare, while yields declined by 16% among comparable households. That represents a 20 percentage point advantage for participating households. During the particularly challenging 2024/2025 season, participating households produced an average of 2,116 kilograms of cocoa – around 500 kilograms more than similar households. These results point to stronger performance and greater resilience in the face of adverse weather and volatile cocoa markets.
The report also found that the share of women classified as empowered increased by 114% compared with 2022. This was 66 percentage points higher than in comparable communities. Women’s participation in Village Savings and Loans Associations rose by 23 percentage points. Food insecurity fell by 8 percentage points, while dietary diversity and ownership of productive assets improved.
Integrated support model enhances household incomes and resilience
According to the KIT Institute study, the program’s integrated approach – linking farm support, household support and conditional cash transfers – has contributed to these outcomes. Greater uptake of good agricultural practices, combined with stronger inclusion of women in household financial management, supported gains in both cocoa productivity and income, while also improving household resilience and well-being. Participating households also increased their savings by 272 percentage points more than the comparison group.
The findings also underscore the importance of income diversification. While the report found that the program has not yet led to a significant increase in income diversification, it has strengthened the foundations needed to support this over time. Stronger alternative income sources can help farming households build longer-term resilience and reduce exposure to market shocks, including recent volatility in cocoa prices and changes in farm-gate prices.
According to the report, participating households saw a 190% increase in cocoa income as a result of strong gains in cocoa revenues. The report further found that the reliability of cash transfer deliveries improved.
“These findings validate our pioneering approach to helping cocoa-farming families in West Africa close the gap to a living income,” said Stéphane Detaille, Head of ESG for Confectionery & Snacking Strategic Business Unit at Nestlé. “They show that rewarding effective farm practices, strengthening women’s empowerment and building household resilience deliver encouraging results and must go hand-in-hand to deliver lasting impact. They also help us identify where to focus next – particularly on income diversification and protection against future shocks – as we further scale the program to more cocoa-farming families.”
Next phase will deepen analysis and support wider industry collaboration
Over the next 12 months, the KIT Institute will examine in greater detail the drivers of yield improvement, the adoption of regenerative agriculture practices, income diversification and school attendance. These insights are expected to inform the program’s next phase and help refine where support can deliver the strongest long-term impact.
The evaluation covers the program’s test-at-scale phase in Côte d’Ivoire and is based on four rounds of household survey data collected between 2022 and 2025. It compares participating households with similar households in comparable cooperatives that are benefiting from other sustainability support. The analysis is contextualized against ongoing climate volatility, disease pressure, rising production costs and broader changes in the cocoa sector.
Nestlé is continuing to expand its reach while adapting its approach. This includes co-founding the TogetherCocoa Foundation, which aims to accelerate industry-wide collaboration to help close the living income gap and strengthen the resilience of the cocoa supply chain. The company is broadening its engagement with the Foundation, as it scales up its work.
[1] The Women Empowerment Index (WEI) combines three dimensions: access to resources, participation in household decision-making, and access to an enabling environment, measured through group membership.
Report references
Income Accelerator Program Progress Report Summary
