Can Fair Trade Help Increase Peace in West Africa?

Chocolate is quite a daily habit for many of us in the United States. For a few years now, many advocates such as Global Exchange and the International Labor Rights Fund have called on the chocolate industry to reform its labor practices to better protect children. Reports from the US State Department, the media, and reputable NGOs concluded that exploitative child labor abuses tens of thousands of children in West Africa. Fair Trade chocolate is sometimes held up as way to reduce child labor, by providing families sustainable income that keeps kids in school and out of the field. At one point, the chocolate industry agreed to the Harkin-Engels Protocol, a Congressional initiative to solve the worst child labor problems in cocoa growing. While many in the child advocacy community are disappointed by the progress toward the protocol’s goals, new concerns about cocoa growing are now arising. Last month Global Witness released a report–”Hot Chocolate”–suggesting that, like “conflict diamonds,” revenue from cocoa beans had fueled the flames of civil war in Ivory Coast.

While I definitely think supporting Fair Trade alternatives like Divine Chocolate is an important way to foster economic justice, the report left me a little discouraged and disheartened. Reading of the violence and corruption that was fueled in part by $118 million from the cocoa trade made my little chocolate habit seem pretty insignificant. In fact, of the report’s 10 recommendations, none are made to individual consumers, although chocolate manufacturers–and by extension their customers–are called to do extended due diligence on their cocoa supply chains and purchasing practices. While it is encouraging that there are two Fair Trade Certified cooperatives in Ivory Coast, I wonder if Fair Trade had any role to play in the past, or if it holds out any unique hope as peace tries to take hold in the country.

If you have a moment, put down your candy bar, check out the report, and then let us know what you think:
If you replace your conventional chocolate with a great, farmer-empowering Fair Trade brand like Divine Chocolate, does that have a role to play in conflict resolution and peace-building?

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 11th, 2007 and is filed under Chocolate, Fair Trade . You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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