Australia's Assistant Minister for Trade and Assistant Minister for Manufacturing Senator Tim Ayres visited PNG’s very own Queen Emma Chocolate factory owned by local food leader Paradise Foods Limited, to see firsthand how cocoa sourced from local farmers is turns it into chocolate products for domestic and export markets. He is in Port Moresby to attend the 38th Australia-Business Forum. “Australia is proud to support Papua New Guinean companies reach their potential by elevating the quality of production to meet international market standards and establish commercial links with Australia and New Zealand.” “Australia and New Zealand have supported Queen Emma Chocolate through the Pacific Horticultural and Agricultural Market Access Plus (PHAMA Plus) Program since 2016.” “This is to improve cocoa quality and productivity, increasing the access to new markets, and improving returns for smallholder cocoa farming households.” This support has enabled Queen Emma Chocolate to set up small-scale laboratory facility to develop smaller batches of different chocolate products for various markets. It has also established buyer linkages and conducted successful commercial trial shipments of over 10,550 kg of cocoa butter, 3,750 kg of cocoa powder, cocoa nibs, and cocoa mass to Australia and beyond. This PHAMA support has not only benefitted the factory in terms of production but has also provided staff with industry-specific knowledge of chocolate-making equipment. Queen Emma’s Managing Director, Karina Makori said they are proud to be PNG owned factory that processes PNG-grown cocoa. “Our collaboration with PHAMA Plus has created a faster system for testing cocoa beans, making it easier to provide timely and accurate feedback to smallholder suppliers, while also improving cocoa production in PNG”. Cocoa farming provides direct income to over 150 000 households in the country and Queen Emma sources its cocoa from over 3500 households in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, Morobe, Madang and smaller supplies from East New Britain, Oro, Milne Bay, East Sepik and the Central Province.