Chocolate : Revealing the truth
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Chocolate : Revealing the truth
Chocolate . The very word conjures feelings of pleasure , or at least , that ’ s how it is for most of us . Sadly , there is also a very dark side to it .
The next time you bite into a chocolate bar or enjoy a cup of hot chocolate you might want to consider a secret , horrible ingredient - child slavery . Lots of chocolate production causes human misery that can , and must , be stopped .
The connection between chocolate manufacturers and child slavery is one of the world ’ s best-kept secrets . I ’ m here to ruin it for you . We can ’ t look away .
Some of the top cocoa-producing nations in West Africa continue to allow slavery , especially Côte dʹIvoire ( pronounced koht dee VWAR , and also known as Ivory Coast . See page 8 for more about Côte dʹIvoire ). Although throughout Africa slavery is officially illegal , it is often practiced , and enforcement of the law is limited . Real life on a West African cocoa plantation is a far cry from the neat picture painted by the chocolate brands . Every year , thousands of Malian children are sold into slavery and brought into Côte d ’ Ivoire to work . Côte d ’ Ivoire produces roughly 40 % of the entire world ’ s cocoa . Altogether , the countries in West Africa supply around 70 % of the world ’ s cocoa . On about 90 % of cocoa farms in Côte dʹIvoire children are used . These farms are mostly hidden away where nobody notices , so it is easy get away with it .
The US Department of State estimates that more than 109,000 children in Côte dʹIvoire ‘ s cocoa industry work under “ the worst forms of child labor ,” and that some 10,000 are victims of human trafficking or enslavement . However , many contradicting reports have been issued , and the real number of slaves in Côte dʹIvoire may be a lot higher .
The problem has complex causes . Extreme poverty and low pay from the large chocolate companies force many farmers to cut costs to an extreme in order to survive . Corrupt government systems interfere
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