Cross River State in Nigeria has some of the country’s most suitable land for cocoa cultivation. As global demand for cocoa has surged, driving up prices and reshaping international sourcing, pressure to expand production in the region has intensified. This expansion, however, has come at a steep environmental cost. Cocoa-driven land conversion is now a major contributor to deforestation and carbon emissions in the Cross River landscape. 

Over the past decade, the region has lost an estimated 12,000 hectares of forest each year, nearly 1% of its forest cover annually. While this deforestation is driven by multiple factors, cocoa expansion remains an important contributor. Even more concerning, the pace of forest loss has accelerated over the last five years and is likely to continue as global cocoa demand continues to rise. 

In response to these challenges, Tulip (ECOM’s entity in Nigeria) and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) are partnering on the Deforestation-Free Cocoa Landscape initiative, launched in July 2025. The WCS-led initiative aims to halt cocoa-driven deforestation while improving farmer livelihoods and protecting globally significant biodiversity. 

Cocoa expansion and climate impact 

Projections indicate that cocoa expansion in the region is increasingly linked to deforestation risks. Implementing targeted interventions to prevent cocoa cultivation from encroaching into protected areas and the surrounding 20-kilometre buffer zone is therefore critical to prevent further forest loss, maintain carbon stocks, and support climate resilience. 

Encroachment into protected areas also remains a persistent threat. Addressing this risk is essential not only for reducing emissions but also for safeguarding critical ecosystems and wildlife habitats. 

Ecosystem health and livelihoods 

Cross River is Nigeria’s second-largest cocoa-producing state and supports the livelihoods of an estimated 75,000 to 100,000 farmers. In this region, cocoa productivity has the potential to increase with better agricultural training to address ageing and diseased farms, better input access and increased climate change resilience. Only about 20% of farmers currently receive technical extension support, mainly through company sustainability programs and Licensed Buying Associations. 

The Cross River landscape is also home to extraordinary biodiversity, including over 1,000 different species of butterflies, numerous threatened bird and amphibian species, leopards, African elephants, and 11 species of primates, such as chimpanzees, drills, and Preuss’ monkeys. It is also internationally recognised as the last stronghold of the Critically Endangered Cross River gorilla, with an estimated 250 to 300 individuals remaining in just three to four troops.  

The Role of the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) 

WCS is one of the world’s largest and longest-running conservation organisations, working to protect wildlife and ecosystems through scientific research, field-based conservation, and community engagement. WCS emphasises the close links between biodiversity, livelihoods, and climate resilience, and advances policies and practices that support long-term environmental sustainability. In Cross River State, they play a central role in the management of four protected areas that serve as critical biodiversity strongholds and together form a vital ecological corridor linking Nigeria and Cameroon. 

Proposed Interventions for a Deforestation-Free Cocoa Landscape 

The initiative focuses on an integrated set of interventions designed to protect forests, reduce emissions, and improve farmer livelihoods: