The Big Problem With Cocoa Production And What One Major Producer Is Doing About It
This article is more than 2 years old
Bad news for chocoholics today. The harvesting of cocoa beans and cocoa production are detrimental to the world’s health. This may sound like something you just tell yourself to stop eating so many sweets, but it’s true. While dark chocolate has been shown to have positive effects on the body and the cocoa bean is still a challenge to procure due to supply chain shortages.
According to Tasting Table, coca bean production isn’t known for great practices. Harvesting of the cocoa bean causes deforestation, exploits child labor, and also pays laborers a very unfair wage. So, one of the world’s largest chocolate brands is trying to do something to fix these situations.
Mondelēz International, producers of such brands as Cadbury, Oreo, and Milka, is a spinoff of Kraft Foods. With such brand power as this behind the producers, something had to be done. So, the Cocoa Life program was born. The goal of the initiative is to help create better practices when it comes to cocoa production.
Chocolate companies are already facing smaller candy bars. For chocoholics around the world, that won’t stand. Plus, it’s also trivializing the situation. But, The Cocoa Life program has already made strides in helping how the world’s cocoa beans are produced production how folks are paid for their labor.
Mondelēz reports that through Cocoa Life, the average wage of farmers has improved 33%. In addition, the brand says it has implemented Child Labor Monitoring and Remediation Systems in 61% of its West African Cocoa Life communities. Hopefully, Mondelēz can help spearhead more programs like this.
By 2030, the snack manufacturer plans to help more of its farmers achieve a better income, bolster programs that help with child labor issues, and attain “no deforestation” in its supply chain.
If this becomes a reality, the biggest issue chocolate companies will have will be copyright infringement with bunny molds. The destruction of chocolate is easier to take than the destruction of rainforests and the exploitation of child labor.
Mondelēz is hoping that change happens soon and that other brands will follow its lead. More and more companies are putting safeguards in place as chocolate lovers of the world are uniting for a true change.
In fact, some chocolate bars are now identified as ‘sustainable chocolate’ indicating for consumers that that particular cocoa production was created without child labor and without harm to the environment, with decent and equitable wages to the farmers.
Although chocolate and candy overall were experiencing their own supply chain crisis with increased Halloween candy demand, chocolate producers know they have to take action before it’s too late. Cocoa production has to change or face being eradicated due to declining sales.
It’s only in the chocolate producers’ best interest to do something. Without action, either demand for chocolate will dry up due to bad PR, or there will be no more beans for cocoa production.
