World Chocolate Day: Is your chocolate eating habit harming environment & people?
It is probably most famous banquet in the world even named after the International Day of Chocolate which is celebrated every year on July 7 1550 to commemorate 1st arrival of chocolate in Europe.
People around Global world love it so much that we eat seven million tons of chocolate a year. If this is calculated then 1Kg chocolate comes in every part of the earth.
But there are also darker aspects to fun that many documentaries including 2010's The Dark Side of Chocolate have tried to draw attention to.
Chocolate industry has long been under increasing pressure to address issues such as deforestation & child exploitation. It should be noted that the sweet taste of chocolate is obtained from cocoa beans cultivation & harvesting of which have-been accused of being used by young children.
Where does chocolate come from?
Biggest problem with the chocolate industry is that cocoa needed to make it is not available in large quantities.
Cocoa trees are very sensitive and need a certain temperature & rain to bloom. Along with this the shade of the forest is also necessary to protect these trees from sunlight & strong winds. These are conditions that are met in very few countries.
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According to the Food & Agriculture Organization of UN United Nations only 2 West African countries, Ivory Coast & Ghana are responsible for 52% of the world cocoa bean production.
Other countries in the region such as Nigeria & Cameroon account for 69% of Africa's gross domestic product.
Climate change and deforestation
Climate change is a major concern that could lead to global warming & prolonged droughts especially in West Africa & this is bad news for farmers here.
Another problem is deforestation as farmers often do not hesitate to cut down trees to plant new trees.
Environmentalists say cocoa cultivation is a major cause of deforestation in Ivory Coast. According to the World Bank this African country has lost 80% of its forests in 50 years fastest rate anywhere in the world.
Even so the forests are still in danger. According to American organization Mighty Earth which monitors forests with the help of satellites 470 square kilometers of forests disappeared in 2020 alone.
But the problem is also linked to climate change long term effects of which will threaten livelihoods of farmers here.
Dr Mr Michael Odeji is a researcher at University College London who works on Africa cocoa industry. He believes that the simple reason for this circle is economy.
Environmental value of cocoa cultivation is enormous he told the British news. Unfortunately this will continue because of the low cost of production in the forest.
chocolate industry says it is taking steps to move things in right direction.
United States of American company Mars the world's largest chocolate seller told British News that it had taken steps to sustain the supply of cocoa and to grow cocoa without deforestation. Also included is the 2025 target.
In response to questions from British news the company said there is no place in the supply chain for the illegally produced cocoa Mars.
Mars also said that he has started work on reforestation under a public private partnership with the help of the governments of Ivory Coast & Ghana.
Exploitation of children
There is also evidence of forced labor in cocoa cultivation by children & adults. In 1998 UN United Nations Children Fund stated that children from neighboring countries were systematically trafficked Ivoire where they were forced to work on cocoa farms.
According to UK British NGO Anti Slavery International this trend continues today.
Jessica Turner a spokeswoman for the organization told the British news that a conservative estimate is that around 30,000 adults & children are forced into the cocoa industry worldwide.
But widespread child labor is another problem. According to International Labor Organization the term refers to any work that deprives children of their childhood.
A 2020 study by the University of Chicago found that two out of 5 children living in cocoa growing areas in Ivory Coast & Ghana work in poor conditions & their workplaces. They were declared dangerous because they had to deal with sharp tools working hours at night & chemicals used in agriculture.
Since 2001 chocolate industry has pledged to eliminate child labor in cocoa production as part of an international agreement also known as the Harkin Angel Protocol. But it also has a deadline of 2020 to reduce child labor by 70% in Ivory Coast & Ghana.
World Cocoa Foundation an organization formed under the umbrella of the world's largest chocolate industry has also acknowledged the problem of child labor in the industry. It says the cocoa production industry in Ivory Coast & Ghana employs about 1.6 million children.
Organization says on its website that any incident of forced labor modern slavery or human trafficking in the supply chain cocoa production will not be tolerated at all.
Organization also says it is committed to eliminating child labor in Cocoa by increasing investment in social development programs to address the problem.
It claims that the amount allocated for these programs in 2019 alone was more than the amount allocated in period 2001 to 2018.
British news contacted the World Chocolate Foundation for comment but did not receive a response until the article was published.
According to some people in the industry & those who have raised their voices against exploitation in chocolate industry we do not pay a fair price.
German based NGO Incota which is campaigning for a fair price for chocolate says the price paid to cocoa growers is also a major factor in the industry problems.
Evelyn Ban a human rights consultant at the NGO told British News Coco farmers live in extreme poverty & are directly linked to issues such as child labor & deforestation.
In 2020 fair trade experts estimated that a cocoa farmer earns an average of 0. 0.90 a day. That's well below World Bank extreme poverty rate of 90 1.90 a day.
Main reason for the poverty and hardship that starts here is to make cocoa farmers pay less says Dr. Me Michael.
Organizations such as Incotta & Fair Trade Foundation which advocate for the rights of cocoa farmers & those working in them believe that solution to this situation will require raising the price of cocoa seeds in the market. & in this regard some chocolate companies have publicly promised to pay more to cocoa farmers.
An example of this is Tony Chocoloni a Dutch chocolate company that started out as a campaign against forced labor in the chocolate industry but is now the country largest chocolate seller.
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Ben Green Smith managing director of the company in the UK told the British news Our sole purpose in entering the industry was to make chocolate from child labor & without slavery. & giving cocoa farmers a fair price was one of the basic principles.
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But that does not mean consumers have to spend more on sweets. According to an estimate by Inkota if farmers are given a fair price for their crops the price of 100 grams of chocolate will increase by only 20 paise.
It's not a big increase but it will make a huge difference in the lives of cocoa farmers said Ban.
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