[Interview] Douglas Lamont (Tony’s Chocolonely) holds up a mirror to ‘big chocolate’

Big chocolate manufacturers got away smoothly with price increases of up to 20 % last year, but continue to refuse to pay cocoa farmers a living wage. The excuses are running out, Tony’s Chocolonely top executive Douglas Lamont believes.

“Big business can be good business”

“We are first and foremost an impact company, only secondarily a chocolate company”, ‘Chief Chocolonely’ Douglas Lamont states. He holds the title equivalent to CEO since October, as he made the move from Innocent Drinks, where he was at the helm for nine years. “The opportunity to join a purpose-driven company with such an important mission was too good to pass up. I believe big business can also be good business. We tried that with Innocent when we grew from virtually nothing to 500 million. Tony’s Chocolonely is a great brand and a great product. I am confident we can scale this up globally.”