How to Find Ethical Chocolate (and Why You Need It)
Ethical chocolate can be difficult to find. There are labels to look out for, such as “fair” or “direct trade”, but they don’t tell us much and the process of obtaining these marks can be costly for chocolate makers, not to mention brands that closely follow. where their cocoa isn’t sold in every supermarket and pharmacy. We can say that ethical chocolate is in many ways similar to ethical meat: in order to choose the right one, it is better to know the manufacturer and trust him.
Why is ethical chocolate needed?
What most people know about chocolate is that child labor is widely used in Ivory Coast in Africa, where most of the world’s Theobroma cocoa is grown and mined. A good rule of thumb would be to refrain from buying larger brands that lack source transparency, but this would include virtually all chocolates in line at the grocery store, unless that grocery store is more trendy.
Most of the chocolate is sourced from opaque sources and is produced using low-wage or slave labor because, at least in the United States and Europe, we have come to think of it as ordinary and not worth mentioning – just a snack or a treat that can be picked up anywhere. But this understanding leaves labor and land open to exploitation and has led to a decline in cocoa biodiversity , leaving crops vulnerable to disease and extinction.
Chocolate has become ubiquitous in many countries around the world, despite the fact that it is a commodity that requires care both as a crop and as a candy. The first step towards a more ethical choice when it comes to chocolate is to treat it as something unique and condescending – it has become a cliché, but treat it like a special bottle of wine.
This is not to say that super dark chocolate should live without “inclusions” – what the artisan industry calls nuts or puffed rice, which we are used to mixing with bars on the shelves. Take, for example , Tony’s Chocoloney , a Dutch company that has recently launched an initiative called bars Sweet Solution. Their bars are packed in curls and chunks and wrapped in brightly colored paper that reminds the shopper of classic chocolates, but made with cocoa from clear sources.
A company dedicated to making chocolate “100% slave-free” launched them to draw attention to the Harkin-Engel Protocol , which was established in 2001 by US Senator Tom Harkin and Representative Eliot Engel to eradicate child slavery in the country. cocoa trade and decided on protocols in 2010. It was a landmark decision involving chocolate makers in the US and Europe who changed conditions in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana to support educational and other wellness initiatives.
But according to an October 2020 NORC report from the University of Chicago , “the number of children involved in hazardous child labor in cocoa production in the cocoa-growing regions of Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana increased by 13 percentage points over a 10-year period (2008 to 09 to 2018-19). This increase coincides with a 62 percent increase in cocoa production in the two countries. ” This means that the more the chocolate industry grows, the more dangerous child labor is, and it becomes more and more important to treat your bars and sweets with more attention. consideration.
How to find ethical chocolate
Fortunately, there is chocolate for every taste and budget. The aforementioned Tony’s Chocoloney has its “5 Sourcing Principles,” which include using 100% traceable cocoa beans, engaging in long-term direct trading partnerships, and focusing on cocoa quality and performance to optimize cocoa yields. The bars are based on affordable flavors that even kids love, such as bars of milk chocolate with 32% cocoa, and bars containing waffles, nougat, caramel and hard candy.
For those looking for more sophisticated flavors, Raaka Chocolate , based in Red Hook, Brooklyn, makes its bars and baking discs from cocoa sourced directly from producers and publishes the price they pay on their website. Cru Chocolate, based in Sacramento, California, specializes in chocolate consumption and works with cooperative growers in Guatemala and Honduras. For vegan truffles and other chocolate-based confections, Lagusta’s Luscious of New Finger, NY, purchases chocolate fromRepublica de Cacao , based in Ecuador.
While the world of chocolate can seem large and intimidating, the principles for finding a manufacturer who will feel good with support are simple: look for those who don’t know where their cocoa comes from, and ask a few questions if those answers aren’t easy to find. Ethical chocolate tastes better at all levels and is well worth it.