Mars, Nestle promise ethical cocoa supply
By Charlotte Eyre
07/02/2008- Global confectioners Mars and Nestle have joined a sustainable cocoa programme, which aims to establish a traceability system for all farmers in the Ivory Coast.
The Good Inside Cocoa Programme, established by the Dutch non-profit organisation Utz Certified, aims to eliminate environmental and humanitarian problems such as child labour, deforestation and low salaries.
As consumer and regulatory concern over working conditions in Africa increases, manufacturers can no longer ignore the responsibility they have towards some of the poorest workers in the world.
However, Utz Certified project manager Daan de Vries told ConfectioneryNews.com that the programme will have practical implications as well.
"We will consider issues such as market supply, health and safety - all the factors necessary for cocoa trading," he said.
On a purely business level, Western firms are indeed conscious that protecting supply from the Ivory Cost and Ghana - which together account for 65 per cent of the world's net cocoa - is vital in order to keep margins high.
The organisation is currently working on developing a code of practice, focusing on five main areas:
The organisational setup
Building relevant networks
Working out traceability
Organising the chain of custody.
Setting up stakeholder consultation periods
The initial draft of the code will be published in the next two weeks, and then producers, stakeholders and manufacturers will have until April to suggest any changes they deem necessary, de Vries said.
Utz Certified hopes that the first certified cocoa growers will begin production by the end of the year, with "Good Inside" cocoa available on the market by the end of 2009.
The organisation also said it decided to initiate the scheme after the success of its programme for ethical coffee trading, first established five years ago.
"We believe that Utz Certified's experience in mainstream coffee certification and traceability, and the experience and commitment of all the organisations involved, will enable us to work towards a more sustainable cocoa sector," de Vries said.
Mars and Nestle's commitment to sustainable cocoa comes only one week after Cadbury pledged to protect Ghanaian chocolate production through a scheme that, similarly, was promoted as helping improve the livelihoods of African farmers.
Another company keen to show ethical credentials is Blommer, which currently has cocoa trading programmes with farmers in both the Ivory Coast and South East Asia.
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Synopsis from Fairtrade.net
Much of our chocolate comes from the Ivory Coast region of West Africa, where cocoa production is an enormous part of the economy. In Ghana, 40% of the country’s export revenues come from the sale of cocoa. Unfortunately, very little of the profit goes to the farmers who grow the cocoa beans. Cocoa farmers receive about a penny for a candy bar selling for 60 cents. Cocoa
Much of our chocolate comes from the Ivory Coast region of West Africa, where cocoa production is an enormous part of the economy. In Ghana, 40% of the country’s export revenues come from the sale of cocoa. Unfortunately, very little of the profit goes to the farmers who grow the cocoa beans. Cocoa farmers receive about a penny for a candy bar selling for 60 cents.
In fact, the difficulty in making a living at cocoa farming has spawned an increase in child and even slave labour drawn from poor neighbouring countries such as Mali, Burkina Faso, Benin, and Togo. In 2001, the International Labour Organization and others reported child slavery on many cocoa farms in the Ivory Coast, source of 43% of the world’s cocoa. Subsequent research by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture revealed some 284,000 children between the ages of 9 and 12 working in hazardous conditions on West African cocoa farms. Of these children, it was reported that some 12,000 child cocoa workers who participated in the study were likely to have arrived in their situation as a result of child trafficking. Children and other workers are forced to work long days picking and processing cocoa beans (it takes 400 of these pods to make just one pound of chocolate).
Fairtrade cocoa offers farmers an opportunity to make a real living, as the Fairtrade Standards guarantee a minimum price. A Fairtrade Premium of US$150/metric tonne is added to the purchase price and is used by cooperatives for social and economic investments such as education, health services, processing equipment, and loans to members. If the cocoa is organic certified, the Fairtrade Premium is an additional $200/metric tonne in addition to the Fairtrade Minimum Price.
Please click on the link below for a comparison between cocoa Fairtrade Minimum Prices and Market Prices:
Cocoa Market Price vs. Fairtrade Minimum Price (1994-2007)
Also, the Fairtrade Certifications Mark on a product provides consumers a trusted guarantee that no forced or abusive child labour was used in the making of the product.
Evolution of Fairtrade cocoa sales (in Metric Tons)
Where are the Fairtrade Cocoa Producers?
At the end of 2006, FLO International worked with 21 cocoa producer organizations in Africa and Latin America. If you want to find out where the Fairtrade Certified Cocoa Producer Organizations are located, please check the database available on the FLO-CERT website.
Is compliance to Fairtrade certification the best solution?
