Chocolate is big business: In 2021, its global trade value was $9.59 billion. But this is just a fraction of what the industry could be if it turned waste into opportunity. 

Chocolate comes from cocoa beans harvested from a larger cacao pod. While the beans are fermented and processed to form chocolate, the other 75% of the pod is often thrown out. This results in about 700,000 tons of waste annually.

However, the often-discarded materials from cacao production have a host of untapped environmental and economic benefits. The pod husks, for example, can be repurposed as a sustainable livestock feed or converted into biochar to form compost. Discarded pod husks can be used as biomass for electricity production, offering a renewable alternative to fossil fuels. Cacao pulp can be made into foods and beverages. Repurposing cacao waste can also improve small cocoa farmers’ incomes, many of whom live on only $2 a day. From fertilizer to feed to energy, WRI experts break down how farmers and others can get the most out of their cacao plants. Read more.

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U.S. lands from forests to grasslands to wetlands can help curb climate change by acting as a “carbon sink,” storing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. But without proper management, land can also become a carbon source. WRI experts lay out ways to protect the U.S. carbon sink to achieve the country’s emissions-reduction goals. Read more.

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The end of January marked 12 consecutive months where global temperatures averaged more than 1.5 degrees C (2.7 degrees F) above pre-industrial levels. The world felt the effects in the form of record-breaking floods, devastating wildfires and more. With the latest science projecting 2.9 degrees C (5 degrees F) of warming by 2100, what will the climate impacts of tomorrow look like? For some cities, it will mean many more blistering hot days. Read more.

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WRI measures its impact by the change we make in the world. From improving road design to save lives in Brazilian cities to creating more than 50 new parks in Jakarta, Indonesia, WRI’s Top Outcomes represent our biggest successes around the globe. Learn more about our impact.

Activities like planting trees or conserving natural ecosystems increase what’s known as the land carbon sink. While increasing it is crucial, so is protecting the carbon already stored in U.S. forests, grasslands and wetlands.