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The prolonged COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted many livelihoods and impacted many Food and Beverage (F&B) businesses. The need for food and daily essentials has been exacerbated amongst the vulnerable communities, thereby increasing the need for more food support. As part of the Food industry and to support these communities, GCB Cocoa has pledged a donation to a food charity, The Food Bank Singapore.

With the mission of ending food insecurity in all forms in Singapore, The Food Bank Singapore partners with 360 beneficiaries to provide a hearty meal to the needy. They receive food donations from a wide range of donors (such as manufacturers, distributors and retail stores) with excess food and deliver these donations to their network of beneficiaries who are in need of food support.

Managed by Malaysia’s Ministry of Human Resources, the Human Resource Development Fund (HRDF) is a pool of funds that consists of Human Resources Development Levies collected from employers of the manufacturing and service sectors. The aim of HRDF is to develop quality human capital and to build a world-class workforce to support Malaysia’s vision of becoming a high-income economy.

As an employer registered with the Pembangunan Sumber Manusia Berhad (PSMB), GCB Cocoa is entitled to training grants to defray all or a major portion of the costs incurred in employee training.

In 2020, we installed 2800 solar panels at Keluli, near our Pasir Gudang facility, to increase the proportion of renewable energy used in our factories. Each panel generates 400W, with a total installed capacity of 1,120 kilowatts peak (kWp).
 
The energy produced from the solar energy system installed are consumed first to power up our building and various equipment. The excess solar energy produced are then sold to Distribution Licensees, such as Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB), a Malaysian multinational electricity company, through Malaysia’s NEM (Net Energy Metering) system organized by the Sustainable Energy Development Authority (SEDA) Malaysia.

We estimate that we will be able to produce more than 1,400,000 kWh of solar energy annually through our solar energy system, and generate more than 500,000 RM annually via the NEM (Net Energy Metering) system.

We recognize that promoting gender equality and women empowerment can generate ripple effects that are good for our organization and our society.  We are committed to ensuring equal opportunities in the workplace so that the voices of all women in GCB Cocoa can be heard.

Although the percentage of male employees in the manufacturing industry tends to be high due to the labourious nature of factory work, we have consistently managed to achieve above average numbers of female employees, executives and managers. On average, the proportion of female managers in our organization is 12% higher than the global average and 18% greater than the Asia Pacific Average.

We will continue to promote gender diversity in the workplace by ensuring diversity in our hiring practices and building a strong culture of inclusivity, opportunity, non-discrimination and fairness throughout our organization. Together, we can make GCB Cocoa a better place for all to work in.

 

We are committed to ensuring a healthy lifestyle for all our employees to create a positive work environment, increase staff morale, employee engagement, while helping to increase business performance and productivity. The 3 pillars of our healthy lifestyle programme- Eat Well, Exercise Well, Play Well- highlight our actions to promote a thriving, flourishing community in GCB Cocoa.

Eat Well
Ensuring healthy employees is important for us to ensure a happy, vibrant and thriving community in GCB Cocoa. We will organize weekly Fruit Days to encourage staff to eat more fruit and educate them on nutrition information to improve their eating habits. We will also organize Bring Your Own (BYO) Lunch days to encourage staff to eat healthier, home-cooked meals in office.  

Exercise Well
Our Sports Recreation Welfare Club (SRWC) has been actively organizing sports and welfare activities to promote healthy lifestyles and team bonding, including our annual badminton tournament. We will continue to promote SRWC activities to encourage more staff to take part in their programmes. We will also work with local gyms to arrange for discounted gym rates for our staff to promote regular exercise.

Play Well
Promoting the mental health and wellbeing of our employees is important to improve productivity, engagement, and foster good relationships in the workplace. We will educate staff with tips on self-care, such as on sleep and rest, and organize more family bonding activities, such as movie days and chocolate workshops for our employees’ children.

With a large amount of carton, plastic, pallets and woven bags waste generated as part of our operations, we are actively looking for ways to recycle them to reduce our impact on the environment. Over the years, our GCB employees have coordinated and sold these wastes for recycling, and this has generated extra funds which has helped to support our community efforts.

In 2019, we raised close to RM 50,000 from recycling the materials we use in our operations. These funds went to support our programmes for our community and employees. We will continue to expand recycling programmes in our factories and offices and find more recycling partners to support our cause.

We value the skills and knowledge of our employees and we believe that we can use our core competencies- our people- to empower future generations. By empowering youth with the knowledge, experience, and skills for the workforce, we are doing our part to improve the future of our community. That is why we are committed to hiring more college and University students to take part in our Internship programme to gain valuable skills so that they can transform their knowledge into a better future for their communities.

As of March 2020, we have hired 118 Interns to join our GCB Team to work in our offices in Pasir Gudang and Singapore. We are constantly on the lookout to hire more students to join our Internship Programme and we have hired 2 more Interns in GCB Cocoa Singapore for the rest of 2020. We look forward to welcoming them in our team!

“During my final year in university, I was looking to follow my passion and join a company that would help me take the first step into corporate sustainability. Joining GCB Cocoa Singapore as a sustainability intern has given me more than that. It has opened my eyes to the intricacies of business processes and how it interacts with our natural and social environment. I was able to grow with the company in their sustainability journey, and was given multiple opportunities to try new things and step out of my comfort zone. I am glad to be converting to a full-time employee with GCB Cocoa Singapore to continue working on cocoa sustainability together with the company.”

- Jacinta Chuah

Sustainability and Trading Executive

“I joined GCB Cocoa Singapore as a Sustainability Intern in February 2020 and have gained much valuable experience and insight into the cocoa industry, cocoa sustainability, and also got the opportunity to explore other areas of interest such as CSR, Risk Management, and so on. I enjoyed the many different opportunities given to me to draft important policy documents, attend meetings, facilitate communication with customers and partners, and contribute to decisions and projects, alongside the guidance of my nurturing, forthcoming and knowledgeable colleagues. “

- Brenda Wang

Sustainability Intern

On June 2020, GCB Cocoa donated RM 10,000 to Persatuan Rekreasi dan Amal Bekas Kastam dan Imigresen Malaysia, the recreation and charity association of former employees from the Malaysian Customs and Immigration Department. The association was set up to look after the welfare of former custom officers who are members throughout Malaysia.

With COVID-19, many of the members in our community have been impacted by the economic fallout and have lost their jobs and livelihoods, including many employees working in the Malaysian Customs and Immigration Department. Our donation will go to support programs and activities for the welfare, education and development for former employees at the Malaysian Customs and Immigration department, as well as their families and communities. They serve as a form of encouragement to all former staff of the Immigration and Customs Department who will become honorary or ordinary members.

In April 2020, GCB Cocoa pledged $30,000 to the global cocoa and chocolate industry response to COVID-19 in cocoa-growing communities in West Africa and elsewhere. The response is spearheaded by the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF), the Association of Chocolate, Biscuit and Confectionery Industries of Europe (CAOBISCO), BDSI, the European Cocoa Association (ECA) and the Federation of Cocoa Commerce (FCC).

Together with other cocoa and chocolate companies, the industry donated a total of $835,000 to support cocoa-growing communities in the biggest cocoa producing countries Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana, as well as to support health efforts in other major origin countries such as Brazil, Cameroon, Ecuador and Indonesia.

 We will continue to work closely with our partners in the cocoa industry to support cocoa farmers and their families fight the virus and save lives in cocoa-growing communities around the world.

On March 18 2020, the federal government of Malaysia implemented a Movement Control Order (MCO) to help curb the spread of COVID-19 in the country, prohibiting mass movements, gatherings, and ordering the closure of schools and non-essential workplaces.

GCB Cocoa donated 1000 sets of one-time biohazard coverall suits to Batu Pahat District Health Office and Hospital Sultanah Nora Ismail to protect healthcare workers on the frontline. These healthcare facilities are located in the Batu Pahat district of Johor, known as one of the COVID-19 red zones in Malaysia, and have been actively supporting COVID-19 patients in their community to battle the pandemic. We also donated 500 masks to the police force to support their work in ensuring social order and compliance with the MCO restrictions. Overall, we donated more than RM 31,000 to support frontline workers to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.