Kraft Foods Commits to Buy More Sustainable Cocoa

Kraft Foods, makers of Chips Ahoy and Oreo cookies (among others) has committed to buy 30,000 tons of Rain Forest Alliance certified cocoa beans to use in their products. In 2005, Kraft bought a smaller amount of certified beans from Cote d'Ivoire, but this move indicates a stronger commitment to fair and sustainable cocoa than ever before. Good job, Kraft Foods, for making a good choice in where your cocoa comes from.

As I've mentioned many times before, child labor, human trafficking, and abuses of workers are rampant in the cocoa industry, especially along the West Coast of Africa. Children enslaved and abused in the cocoa industry are made to work excruciatingly long days, and are often beaten if they try and leave or refuse to work.  Many have been forced to pick cocoa with open wounds or covered in their own excrement.  The cocoa farms of the Ivory Coast where some of the worst cases of child slavery and labor exploitation have been found are also the world's largest supplier of cocoa, making up 40% of the global market. The cocoa industry needs reform, and it needs it now.

The Rain Forest Alliance is a consumer goods certifying body which is different from Fair Trade, but also seeks to hold corporations to certain standards when it comes to protecting the environment or workers. Their certification covers a full range of worker protection issues including the right to organize; the right to a safe, clean working environment; the right to be paid at least the national minimum wage; dignified housing (including potable water); access to medical care for workers and their families and access to free education for workers' children. When a company like Kraft orders a large quantity of certified cocoa, this makes the certification more desirable for individuals farmers. Thus, they are more likely to change labor practices in order to be in line with the requirements. And Kraft will continue to reward ethical and sustainable farmers by buying their certified cocoa if we reward Kraft by buying their certified chocolate products.

This recent agreement was part of a public-private partnership, known as the "Market-Oriented Promotion of Sustainable Certified Cocoa Production" project. The partnership has enabled six Ivorian cooperatives, representing over 2000 farmers, to gain the Rainforest Alliance Certified(TM) seal. The first crop after the new partnership witnessed better yields and significant productivity gains, in some cases above 50%. The incidence of cocoa 'black pod' disease among workers was also reduced by one third. Overall, farmer incomes have improved from the project. The results speak strongly that the certification process not only helps workers and the environment, it helps farm owners and business owners as well.

Hopefully, Kraft's recent action will act as a catalyst for other companies (I'm looking at you Hershey and Nestle) to make similar strides towards using more certified cocoa, whether it's Fair Trade or Rain Forest Alliance Certified. But in the meantime, I'm going to celebrate this little victory with some delicious, and now more ethical, Oreos.

Photo credit: ericskiff