Call Hershey About Child Labor Today!

This Saturday is World Day Against Child Labor and advocates around the world are taking action this week to call for an end to this abuse. As the International Labor Organization recently reported, though child labor is decreasing globally, 215 million children globally are still trapped in child labor and the pace of the decline is slowing, while child labor is actually increasing in sub-Saharan Africa. Sixty percent of child laborers are working in the agricultural sector. The good news: you can take action today to fight child labor in the agricultural sector in West Africa.

The cocoa industry in West Africa has received attention for years for widespread use of child labor, forced labor, and trafficked labor. Since 2001, major chocolate companies have committed to ending these egregious labor rights abuses in their supply chains. However, years of missed deadlines have resulted in inadequate progress on the ground. A recent documentary on the subject, The Dark Side of Chocolate, reveals the continued trafficking of children from countries like Mali and Burkina Faso onto the cocoa fields of Cote d'Ivoire.

The reduction in child labor in other regions around the world shows that these conditions are not inevitable. But in order to decrease child labor in African agriculture, a necessary part of the solution is for the companies that profit from exploited labor to take action in their supply chains. Some companies have made an effort to track the origins of their cocoa and to improve conditions for the farmers who produce the main ingredient in chocolate. For example, we have written here about the important commitments made by companies like Ben & Jerry's and Cadbury. However, other companies, like the iconic Hershey, have lagged behind their competitors in protecting workers in its supply chain.

Hershey has not agreed to participate in any certification programs for its cocoa and has consistently rejected proposals by shareholders to provide even a basic level of transparency in its cocoa sourcing. That is why Global Exchange, Green America, the International Labor Rights Forum, and Oasis USA are mobilizing chocolate lovers to call Hershey today and asking the company to use World Day against Child Labor as an opportunity to be more transparent about its cocoa supply chain and ensure that child labor and other abuses do not occur in the production of its cocoa. You can join the national call-in day today! Click here or here for more details on how to participate.

When you call Hershey, they will likely direct you to their corporate website and discuss various projects they have funded over the years in cocoa farming communities. Unfortunately, the sad reality is that severe labor rights abuses continue in this industry, and Hershey has not implemented policies to trace its cocoa and ensure it is produced responsibly. Consumers need to know that the specific Hershey products we buy are made under fair labor conditions — from bean to bar.

After you make your call, follow up by sending Hershey an e-mail here.

Photo credit: Razor512