The TDC has been supporting producer cooperatives for several years now. It is therefore interesting to see what has become of some of them following our support.
When a development project ends, does the impact endure ?

For ARCASY, the Yuracaré wild cocoa harvesters' association in the Bolivian Amazon, the answer is a resounding yes.
The Yuracaré indigenous people have harvested wild cocoa (cacao sylvestre) for generations. But in 2014, when the TDC began its partnership with their cooperative ARCASY, that tradition had never been turned into a sustainable livelihood - and the Amazon forest around them was under pressure.

Between 2014 and 2017, the TDC provided targeted, phase-based support to help ARCASY transition from informal gathering to an export-ready cooperative. The intervention funded professional governance, phenotypic characterisation of cacao variants, set up collection centres, processing infrastructure, traceability systems, and market access via Biofach.

By 2017, harvesters' incomes had risen by 15% and ARCASY's turnover had jumped by 76%. Six additional communities achieved FairWild certification. And crucially, the forest was still standing, because harvesting wild cocoa had become more valuable than clearing it.

What has ARCASY become since then?
The cooperative has not only sustained its operations but scaled them independently:
- In 2023: first export of organic wild cocoa to Denmark.
- Supply partnership with Breick, Bolivia's leading chocolatier, secured.
- In 2025-2026: gold and silver medals at the Cacao of Excellence awards in the Netherlands.
- In 2025: Bolivia's government granted "Cacao Nativo Yuracaré" an official Denomination of Origin, protecting the product's identity.

Why was TDC's support pivotal ?
The intervention provided the critical catalyst. By professionalising management, embedding rigorous traceability, and opening early access to European niche markets, TDC helped build the foundational architecture that allowed ARCASY to attract further institutional backing, command premium prices, ant transition to full operational autonomy. ARCASY's model is now a self-sustaining one where forest conservation, indigenous livelihoods, and ethical trade reinforce one another.