Fair Trade Chocolate Takes the Trick Out of Trick or Treat

Reader Contribution by England Porter
1 / 2
2 / 2

Every Halloween my mother would gather us all around after we had gone trick or treating, and asked for her Chocolate Tax, a small fee for enjoying the benefits of being her children. She may have worried about how much we were eating, but it didn’t cross her mind to worry about whether or not the chocolates were Fair Trade. Chocolate was a staple in our home, as it was and remains in many homes throughout America. Hot cocoa, candy bars, chocolate chip cookies — chocolate is everywhere! 

There is a huge market for chocolate, not only in the United States, but worldwide.The global chocolate market is projected to be worth $98.3 billion annually by 2016, according to MarketandMarket, a global market research company. That level of profit creates a strong incentive for companies to seek profit at all costs. When those costs start to include people, we have to wonder if the candy we’re eating has come down a long pipeline of exploitation and mistreatment of people farther down the food chain. Far too often it has.  

The chocolate that most of us eat is picked on farms primarily in Africa. A surprising number of agricultural workers are forced against their will to participate in the cultivation and harvesting of cocoa. Slavery and human trafficking are rampant in the industry and many of those who end up being trapped in this system are children. 

Comments (0) Join others in the discussion!
    Online Store Logo
    Need Help? Call 1-800-234-3368