Child labor strikes at the soul of your chocolate bar

Chocolate

Carol Forsloff - "It is clear from this report that the cocoa industry is not doing enough to address these problems. The world's largest chocolate
manufacturers must do more to monitor their supply chains to combat
child labor, forced labor and human trafficking. "

This report comes from the Payton Center for International Development, outlining issues in 2010 involving human trafficking and child labor in the chocolate industry.  The report was made several years ago, even as chocolate has consistently been found as good for your health.

Yet that does not mean that the sources of chocolate are brought to the table in a humanitarian way.

That next chocolate bar you eat might come at the expense of a child in Africa, as
human rights organizations say that the worst forms of child labor take
place in the Cocoa Sector with companies like Hershey..

Global Exchange, Green America, International Labor Rights Forum, and Oasis USA) found that the Hershey corporation was the laggard in the cocoa industry regarding monitoring its supply chain.

The Payson Center for International Development at Tulane University makes an annual report on the cocoa industry and other industries where child and forced labor takes place.

Their reports underscore the lack of progress that is being made by voluntary
programs adopted by the cocoa industry to address the problems of child
and forced labor in West Africa.  In response, national nonprofits Global Exchange, Green America, International Labor Rights Forum, and Oasis USA called on Hershey, the largest US chocolate company, to take action to end child and forced labor in its supply chain and to adopt Fair Trade Certified cocoa.

The report identifies the ongoing exploitation of labor rights in the cocoa sector including the worst forms of child labor, forced labor and trafficking.  Research related to the trafficking of young workers from Burkina Faso and Mali found that Cote d-Ivoire is the predominant destination for trafficked and migrant cocoa workers.  Most of these were children who moved to cocoa farms without parents or guardians and experienced the worst forms
of child labor, performing work in hazardous conditions.

The Payson Center's report in 2010 recommended that companies institute traceability systems for their cocoa supply chains beginning with the farms.  The report also suggested that certification programs operating in the West African cocoa sector be reviewed to identify and address child labor issues.

 The report identifies major industry actors that have made commitments in this area, including Mars, Kraft, Nestle and Cargill.

"Hershey stands out as the only major chocolate company missing from the list."  The report also found that Hershey lacked transparency and traceability when it came to its cocoa sourcing, as well as meaningful programs to address labor violations in the cocoa-growing communities of West Africa, from where it sources. 

As the dominant chocolate company in the US, the report called on Hershey to "Raise the Bar" and adopt Fair Trade Certification for its best selling bar by 2012, and all of its top selling chocolate products by 2022."

Despite some of the progress that has been made, the chocolate industry as a whole continues to thrive on human trafficking and has been reported to have continued into 2014.  This is in the face of numerous reports by humanitarian agencies about it.  There has been a decline as a result of the publicity, yet the problem is deeply entrenched enough that it continues to be a world problem, particularly in West Africa, where the human trafficking and chocolate go hand in hand.