After recent journalistic exposés brought the issue to the international stage, several popular chocolate brands were exposed for their participation in the global exploitation of chocolate, including Hershey, Nestlé, Godiva, and Mars. Most of these acknowledged their use of child slaves and some even presented plans to purify their farms of child slavery and labor by 2020. Unfortunately, without the proper guidelines and repercussions in place, large chocolate companies will never cease the exploitation of children, as they keep on benefiting from the free labor that generates billions of dollars annually.

However, not all chocolate companies are evil and exploitative. The Fairtrade Foundation, founded in 1992, is a trading partnership that oversees the sustainable farming and trading of raw materials, including cacao

They are based on transparency, respect, and equity, their standards ensure that farmers are paid living wages and that farms are free from child slaves. While none of the major chocolate brands have joined the Fairtrade movement, there are some smaller ones that pledged to reform their production. Divine Chocolate, for example, is a company co-owned by the 85,000 members of Kuapa Kokoo, a Ghana based cooperative that supplies the cacao in each bar of Divine. As owners, they are heavily involved at every level of the company, getting fair shares of the profits for their community and using their voice in the global marketplace.


haggadah Section: -- Cup #2 & Dayenu
Source: tiny hand