So, Hershey's? We don't talk to her anymore.
About Social Sustainability Series
Welcome to my blog series! I’m Sama and I have a passion for empowering global communities, which inspired me to write this blog series on social sustainability and how we can help others around the world through our purchases. As consumers, our dollars are our votes for the type of future we’re supporting, so it’s important to be socially conscious in our choices. You’ve probably heard all this before, “globalization is evil” and whatnot, but I’m telling you now that it doesn’t have to be. You can be a humanitarian today by supporting the right kinds of globalized models. I bring to you my social consciousness and sustainability series where I hope to shed light on how we can be responsible consumers through supporting globalized models that directly serve to benefit the people whose very hands picked or produced your items. I’ll often refer to the Fair Trade model, which is not perfect, but I use it as an important starting point and I’ll explore other concepts like Direct and Transparent Trade. I’m not paid for any of my work or references to products. :) Enjoy!
Image Source: Yelena Yemchuk, ScienceNews.org
“So, Hershey’s? We don’t talk to her anymore.”
One of my favorite things about my breakfast is the chocolate -- cacao powder with my greek yogurt, chocolate covered almonds, chocolate hazelnut butter, chocolate granola or muesli, and of course, a square of dark chocolate. In fact, one of my life goals is to host chocolate tastings when I retire. Yes, I’m a chocoholic, how did you know?
But as much as I love chocolate, I don’t love the mainstream chocolate industry. Plagued by exploitation (of kids especially! My Heart!!) and lucrative business dealings that turn cacao farmers into slaves, the cacao industry is one of the worst to support. We don’t support child exploitation here in the Harvard UNICEF Club, and you shouldn’t either. If you want to actually see the hardships that cacao farmers endure, I recommend checking out Netflix’s “Rotten” Series episode, “Bitter Chocolate.” In this episode, you get to follow the complex cacao system and realize just how this system allows companies to take advantage of farmers. In addition, Forbes recently came out with a heart-breaking article I recommend on how “Cocoa Farmers Who Have Never Tasted Chocolate In Their Lives.” The thing that hurts the most is that these are hardworking individuals who genuinely strive to support their families, but are being ruthlessly used by big companies who don’t care for their well-being. So, Hershey’s? We don’t talk to her anymore.
Don’t worry though, us chocoholics can still get our fix by supporting the right brands. Fair Trade certified chocolate is fantastic for supporting a model where workers are ensured a just wage and safe working conditions. Some brands feature single origin chocolate that bypasses the “middle men” and directly supports cacao plantation farmers.
Ready for a socially sustainable chocolate tasting? Me too, me too. And good news: these brands are usually available at your local grocery stores in addition to online platforms. So, be a humanitarian, make your new shopping motto “Farmers, Food and Fairness”! How else can we justify our spending these days?
Resources:
https://foodispower.org/human-labor-slavery/slavery-chocolate/
https://chargedaffairs.org/the-hidden-ingredient-in-chocolate-africas-child-slaves/
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11064630/
https://www.fairtradecertified.org/shopping-guides/fair-trade-chocolate
https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB123257637607403883
https://s3.amazonaws.com/oxfam-us/www/static/media/files/oxfam-fact-sheet-women-and-cocoa-screen.pdf