Oabika, the new cocoa fruit juice concentrate, is ‘Sirha Innovation Award‘ Winner!

We are extremely proud that our partner Koa is now allowed to officially communicate their placement as “Sirha Innovation Award” winner as well as their new cocoa fruit juice concentrate, Oabika, by Valrhona and Koa. 

Since 2009, Food Service Vision (FSV) has carried out a study every two years in collaboration with Sirha Lyon in order to identify future trends in Food Service. The firm systematically analyzes the novelties put forward during the show through 5 areas of innovation: Well-being, Consciousness, Territoriality, Experience and Functional.

As part of this great news, we want to share with you the official announcement from Koa.

Oabika, the new cocoa fruit juice concentrate by Valrhona in cooperation with Koa

After Koa’s success with their cocoa fruit juice and dried cocoa fruit (see box), the new concentrate elaborated by Valrhona together with Koa is an innovation that complements the range of cocoa fruit ingredients. Oabika offers a multitude of applications such as ganache, jellies, mousses, toppings, sauces, glazes, creams, ice creams, sorbets, or drinks. Whether it’s to create new flavour experiences or to demonstrate what sustainable value creation in the cocoa-growing countries really means. 

Upcycling the cocoa fruit to increase farmers’ income 

The availability of cocoa fruit concentrate for chefs and other gastronomy professionals signifies a milestone for the cocoa fruit valorisation and the cocoa farmers. As the demand for cocoa fruit ingredients grows rapidly, the chances to create a positive impact in the cocoa-growing countries increases at the same time. Until recently, the pulp that surrounds the cocoa beans couldn’t be processed in cocoa-growing countries due to a lack of infrastructure and technology. In conventional cocoa processing, only a small part of the white pulp was used for fermentation, the rest was lost. Koa has found an innovative way to gently process the cocoa fruit in close cooperation with 1,600 smallholders. “As we make use of the cocoa pulp, we provide smallholders with an additional income and at the same time, we create jobs for the young population in rural Ghana,” Daniel Otu, Operations Director at Koa in Ghana, explains.

For Koa, the cooperation with Valrhona is a success.

For Koa, the cooperation with Valrhona is a success. Co-Founder and Managing Director Anian Schreiber emphasises: “As a start-up, we’re proud to be cooperating with a highly reputable and well established chocolate brand as Valrhona who shares our mission of taking responsibility in cocoa-growing countries to the next level. With the launch of Oabika, we demonstrate how indulgence and responsibility for people and planet go hand in hand. We encourage others to seek such partnerships to tackle some of the food system’s most pressing challenges together.”

Oabika will be launched worldwide from September 2021 including Europe, Asia, USA and Middle East. 

*The Brix scale is used to measure the fraction of sucrose in a liquid in degrees Brix, meaning the percentage of soluble, dry matter. The higher the degree Brix, the sweeter the sample, with more concentrated flavours.

About Koa

The Swiss-Ghanaian start-up Koa uses the pulp of the cocoa fruit, thus reducing food waste and providing cocoa smallholders with an additional income. Today, 71 employees in Ghana and Switzerland dedicate themselves to the growth of Koa to boost value creation in the cocoa-growing regions and to developing innovative and pioneering processes. With the natural cocoa fruit products, Koa brings a previously unknown taste to the market and opens up new possibilities for both the food and beverage industry as well as for gastronomy.

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