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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