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Pipiltin Cocoa is part of a growing movement of social entrepreneurship. To introduce this topic to Utrecht ľ�ϸ���Ӱ��’s alumni living in Indonesia, UU professor Harry Hummels visited the company on 29 April 2017 for a joint Pipiltin/UU alumni event.

Cocoa production in Indonesia

Indonesia is the third largest cocoa producer in the world according to the FAO. The country has a rich history in producing cocoa beans – with the first plantations being introduced in the 16^th century. East Java is known for its Cacao Java, while on many of the other islands cocoa plantations were successfully started with their own characteristics. Cocoa beans from Bali have a distinctively different flavour than those originating from, for instance, Flores, Java or Aceh.

Much of the Indonesian cocoa production is traded on the international markets. Increasingly there are Indonesian companies that see economic, social and environmental value in producing chocolate at home. One of these companies is Pipiltin Cocoa.

About Pipiltin Cocoa

The company was founded in 2013 by Utrecht ľ�ϸ���Ӱ�� alumna Tissa Aunilla and her brother. Tissa, a corporate lawyer in Mergers & Acquisitions, had a passion for chocolate and baking chocolate cakes. What started as a hobby ultimately became a profession. Pipiltin is not just a chocolate company. Tissa built her company on the principles of high quality cocoa bean production, sustainability, and buying directly from local cooperatives. So, all the beans are organically grown, while Pipiltin works with the farmers to help them improve their production process and increase the yield.

This leads to an increased income for the farmers and their families. It allows them to improve, inter alia, access for their children to better education, as you can see in a short movie.

Event with Prof Harry Hummels

Pipiltin Cocoa is part of a growing movement of social entrepreneurship. This movement refers to business activities and processes that involve the innovative use of resources to pursue societal change or address societal needs in a sustainable way. To introduce this topic to Utrecht ľ�ϸ���Ӱ��’s alumni living in Indonesia, UU professor Harry Hummels visited Pipiltin Cocoa on 29 April 2017 for a joint Pipiltin/UU alumni event. The field of social entrepreneurship studies is relatively new. In the Netherlands Utrecht ľ�ϸ���Ӱ�� was among the first to focus on this topic and started the Social Entrepreneurship Initiative at the Utrecht ľ�ϸ���Ӱ�� School of Economics in 2013. 

In 2016, Harry Hummels was appointed as the first Dutch professor in Social Entrepreneurship at UU. In his presentation at Pipiltin Cocoa, he focused on the importance of a collaboration between business and academia to foster social and business progress. As an example, he referred to his cooperation with Tony’s Chocolonely – just like Pipiltin a conscious chocolate company focusing on improving the economic and production conditions for smallholder farmers. Tony’s overarching goal, however, is to eradicate illegal child labour and child slavery that is still prevalent in the production of cocoa beans.

Pipiltin, as Tissa explained in her inspiring introduction to the company, has adopted to a large extent the same agenda. It works with local cooperatives, it embraces a clear sustainability agenda and has the ambition to increase the welfare of the local population by improving the value chain and growing the business. By adopting a “from bean to bar” concept, the company and its suppliers add more value to Indonesian communities instead of international markets.

Help to achieve objectives

As a concrete outcome of the meeting, Pipiltin and UU will discuss how research and education can help the company to grow and achieve its business and societal objectives. UU can support Pipiltin, inter alia, in improving its understanding of international value chains, measuring the benefits the company generates for society, the reporting on its societal achievements, research the conditions for entering new markets and Pipiltin’s marketing and communication in those markets, or liaising with other social entrepreneurs. What counts for Tissa, as a UU alumni, and her company may, mutatis mutandis, also apply to other alumni.

Obviously, we could not end the meeting without learning more about the process of making chocolate and, obviously, tasting Pipiltin’s delicious chocolate. It was a very informative and interactive afternoon – sharing knowledge and expertise and reinforcing the bond between the alumni and the university, as well as among the alumni. After such an inspiring afternoon, on behalf of Utrecht ľ�ϸ���Ӱ��’s International Alumni Office, the Social Entrepreneurship Initiative and the attendees of the alumni meeting, we could only wish Tissa good luck with building her inspiring business. 

Terima Kasih
Jakarta, 29 April 2017