Visit H.D. Cotterell at the Port of Hamburg and you will be immediately greeted by the smell of cacao and spices. The family enterprise managed by the fifth generation of owners has been operating at the Port of Hamburg for more than 130 years and has always specialised in the handling and storage of cacao, spices and nuts. “Cacao handling accounts for most of our business,” explains Rainer Fabian, who has been managing director at H.D. Cotterell since October 2023 and has worked at the all-purpose Port of Hamburg for 30 years.

Most of the cacao deliveries arrive as bulk goods – in other words, loose in containers by seafaring vessel at the container terminals or at Unikai, where the company manages around 20,000 square metres of hall space directly at the quay wall. Ships laden with bulk cacao also arrive here, carrying up to 15,000 tonnes of the good. The specialists for port logistics – once known as quarter-men and women – unload the cocoa beans using conveyor belts and wheel loaders, and deposit them in a large hall in heaps up to twelve metres high.

H.D. Cotterell has
storage space at
five sites at the
Port of Hamburg

Thomas Cotterell
Owner H.D. Cotterell

Altogether, H.D. Cotterell uses around 100,000 square metres of storage space at five sites at the Port of Hamburg. “We put the cocoa beans into storage, which are later processed into cocoa butter, mass or powder or directly into chocolate by major processors in Hamburg or throughout the EU,” he continues. In addition, the company also stocks cocoa products such as cocoa butter and cocoa mass, and supplies the melting facility on the company grounds, which the company owner Thomas Cotterell built years ago and has since sold. The company values having its base at the Port of Hamburg for the short pathways that exist here – from the quay wall to the warehouses and for distribution to the processing industry.

In order to guarantee food safety, H.D. Cotterell is certified according to FSSC 22000, BIO DE-ÖKO-039, BIOSUISSE ORGANIC and AEO. The company also handles all customs procedures. To maintain the quality of the beans, they are stored dry and in well-ventilated facilities.

The port logistics provider also checks and constantly monitors the quality of the goods. For this reason, the company is currently acquiring new monitoring equipment that continuously and wirelessly monitors humidity as well as the moisture values of the beans.

The employees of H.D. Cotterell take samples from every incoming batch and carry out bean cuts and bean counts. This means they slice open the beans and analyse them in the company’s own lab. What is the condition of the beans? Are they free from mould, pests and other contaminants? How much do the individual beans weigh? Are the colour, odour and flavour acceptable? The port logisticians always have their eyes on the temperature of the goods, since they warm up as a result of a kind of fermentation process which naturally affects the quality. H.D. Cotterell stores 95,000 tonnes of beans over an area spanning 60,000 square metres. This equates to the cocoa content of around three billion bars of milk chocolate. The warehouse is turned over twice a year on average.

“Too much movement during storage is not good for the beans, as they break easily,” explains the managing director. Handling with wheel loaders and conveyor belts is relatively rough, he adds, which is why it is important to move the goods as little as possible afterwards. The cacao, which arrives in 60-kilogram gunny sacks, is stacked on pallets and weighed. The goods are typically loaded for distribution without sacks, so these are first opened and the beans are loaded onto the truck loose. However, organic cocoa beans are exclusively handled in sacks, allowing the necessary traceability of organic produce. The employees document everything, save the data and send it to the owner of the goods.

“Cacao is very expensive at the moment,” Fabian notes. The price has increased about six-fold over the last six months, he says. A tonne currently costs between 7,300 and 8,200 euros – depending on where the beans are sourced. The main reason for the price increase are reduced harvest yields. “Generally, a decline in import quantities is not good for us, as we want to keep our employees and machines busy. But thanks to our broad positioning, we can compensate for that quite well,” he adds. Why the quantities have fallen is not entirely clear. Factors mentioned include weather conditions and changes in the political and economic conditions.

"We take good
care of our
customer's goods"

Rainer Fabian
Managing Director bei H.D. Cotterell

H.D. Cotterell is also currently occupied with the new EU Deforestation Regulation, which is planned to enter into force in January 2025 and requires even more traceability for cocoa. It is intended to reduce worldwide deforestation as well as promote human rights and the rights of indigenous peoples. However, the practical implementation remains unclear for the companies affected. H.D. Cotterell is therefore actively working on solutions with associations and contributing its experience in these endeavours. Besides cacao, the regulation also applies to beef, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soya and wood, which may in future only be legally marketed in Europe or exported from the EU if they were produced deforestation-free and the laws of the producing country have been observed.

But that’s not all. The company specialised in raw food materials manages a further 40,000 square metres of storage space for spices including cardamom, pepper or paprika as well as nuts and ginger. It also stores rice and prepacked spice mixes that are supplied to Asian food stores in Germany. “Just like with cacao, we take good care of our customers’ goods, check the quality and complete customs clearance,” Fabian explains.

The employees are extensively trained so they know how to take samples and to prevent any contamination with goods in the warehouse, such as with peanuts which can trigger allergies. “We often walk the tightrope between a traditional port warehouse and the standard of hygiene applicable to the requirements of the food processing industry,” he says. The employees understand that they bear a tremendous responsibility.

The company likewise handles general cargo such as rubber or wood as well as consumer products. Generally, business runs well. This is also reflected by the fact that H.D. Cotterell is planning to invest in existing properties and to construct a new, bigger hall at the headquarters at Ellerholzdamm. The topic of sustainability is also not overlooked. “We are a carbon-neutral company because we want to be, not because we have to be,” Fabian proclaims.

The owner Thomas Cotterell is among the very first to adopt electric cars. The company’s vehicle fleet is entirely electric, and most employees now use electric cars. The company has been producing electricity itself for some time – thanks to the photovoltaic installation on the hall roof, which can generate 500 kilowatt peak. This means the company can largely meet its own energy needs in the sunny months of the year. The company has installed 19 charging points for charging electric cars. H.D. Cotterell currently employs around 65 people, who perform challenging and varied work. “And it always smells good here,” Fabian concludes.

Where does cacao come from?

Cacao grows close to the equator and most comes from West Africa. The plants need high humidity and plenty of rain. They also require constant temperatures between 25 and 30 degrees Celsius – like the prevailing climate on the Ivory Coast and in Ghana, where two harvests per year are possible. However, cacao also grows in tropical regions in Central and South America as well as Asia.