Is my chocolate slave-free?
1.8 The Harkin-Engel Protocol
On October 1, 2001, the chocolate industry announced a four year plan to eventually eliminate child slavery in cocoa-producing nations, and particularly West Africa. According to the plan, called the Harkin- Engel Protocol, the“ worst forms of child labor” would no longer be used to produce chocolate and cocoa by 2005.
Larry Graham( president of the Chocolate Manufacturer’ s Association from 1992-2003 and founder of the World Cocoa Foundation) said“ the industry has changed, permanently and forever.” The agreement was signed by the Chocolate Manufacturers’ Association( now known as the Chocolate Council of the National Confectioners’ Association) and the World Cocoa Foundation; as well as by many chocolate producers and cocoa processors including Hershey’ s, Mars, Nestlé, World’ s Finest Chocolate, Blommer Chocolate, Guittard Chocolate, Barry Callebaut and Archer Daniels Midland. It was witnessed by a wide variety of groups including the government of Côte d’ Ivoire, the International Labor Organization’ s child labor office, the anti-slavery group Free the Slaves, the Child Labor Coalition, the International Cocoa Organization( which represents cocoa growing countries), and the National Consumer League.
However, 2005 came and went without any significant changes being made. So the deadline was extended to 2008, which was also missed. By 2010, most major chocolate companies had, once again, promised to begin moving toward slave-free chocolate. Some companies, for example Cadbury, have begun the move, but some companies apparently don’ t care.
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Is my chocolate slave-free?
Many major chocolate makers have insisted that they bear no responsibility for the problem, since they don’ t own the cocoa farms. Is there any way for chocolate consumers to know today that they are not consuming products made with child slavery?
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