Caring Causes: Child Labor and Chocolate

Based on data revealed this week at the Department of Labor's Child Labor Cocoa Coordinating Group (CLCCG), the non-profit groups behind the Raise The Bar, Hershey campaign (Global Exchange, Green America, the International Labor Rights Forum, and Oasis USA) concluded that while many companies have increased their commitments to reducing child labor in the communities they source from, others lag behind, notably Hershey and Barry Callebaut.

 

Hershey's commitment to initiatives supported by the CLCCG was only 17 percent of Mars' (its largest competitor in the US) and Barry Callebaut's was only 11 percent of Mars' commitment. Hershey, the largest chocolate maker in the United States, brings in over $5 billion in revenue every year. Barry Callebaut is one of the largest suppliers of chocolate in the world. As two of the biggest chocolate companies in the world, Barry Callebaut and Hershey are just as responsible as their counterparts for the atrocious labor conditions of the cocoa sector. And yet, both have been miserly when it comes to the fight to remove children from the cocoa fields of West Africa.

In addition, the NGO's critiqued the quality of Barry Callebaut's and Hershey's programs. Hershey's only initiative to fall under the CLCCG program requirements is the CocoaLink, program, which sends text and voice messages to farmers to discourage the use of child labor and encourage more efficient farming techniques. This program was launched in March of 2011 and to date has 3,720 subscribers registered in Ghana, where there are an estimated 700,000+ cocoa farmers. CocoaLink has reached less than 1% of cocoa farmers in Ghana, and no farmers in Cote D'Ivoire.

By Hershey's own testimony, only about one third of the text messages address social issues, a portion of which mention child labor. As there is still no evaluation report on this program, it remains unclear whether these messages have had any substantial impact on farmers' lives. In fact, Hershey's own anecdotal reporting suggests the program is slow to progress "due to low literacy levels and the general unfamiliarity with mobile phone usage."

Barry Callebaut's program aims to build two schools in two cocoa growing communities; a number that appears irrelevant compared to the estimated 36,000+ schoolrooms needed in these regions. No matter how many schools are built or how many health centers are staffed, the balance of power in the cocoa supply chain will remain in the hands of cocoa exporters and chocolate brands unless cocoa farmers can be empowered to negotiate a decent price for their crop. Until then, farmers will continue to live in poverty. 

Additional information on this topic is available on ILRF's Blog and Green America's Blog.
 

GREEN AMERICA is the nation's leading green economy organization. Founded in 1982, Green America (formerly Co-op America) provides the economic strategies, organizing power and practical tools for businesses and individuals to solve today's social and environmental problems. 

GLOBAL EXCHANGE is a membership-based international human rights organization dedicated to promoting social, economic and environmental justice around the world.

INTERNATIONAL LABOR RIGHTS FORUM is an advocacy organization dedicated to achieving just and humane treatment for workers worldwide.

OASIS USA is a non-profit organization committed to developing communities where everyone is included, making a contribution, and reaching their God-given potential.