Chocolate has become one of the most popular gifts given during the holiday’s season. Over 3 million tons of cocoa beans are consumed around the world annually. The market value of the current annual cocoa crop is $5.1 billion. The retail chocolate industry in the United States is worth a little over $13 billion per year. Valentine's Day chocolates contribute more than $1 billion to that total. On average, Americans eat a little over 11 1/2 pounds of chocolate every year, and yes Chocolate is an $80 Billion a year industry.
The sad truth is the vast majority of chocolate products are made using child Slavery. This are children 8 to 15 years olds who are taken away or sold by their parents, so they could be slaves to the chocolate market with no pay, no schooling, and to sum it all up no childhood. Most of these children have never tasted chocolate before, while we get to enjoy and eat the sweetness of their labor. The Ivory Coast produces nearly half of the world cocoa. There are about 600,000 cocoa farms in the Ivory coast, estimated 15,000 children forced to work as slaves in this farms. It is also estimated 90% of cocoa farm in the Ivory coast uses child labor. Here are a few links of documentaries on youtube, so you can watch and see it yourself.
One way we can help these children is by not giving our money to companies who are involved in child labor. Next time your reach for a Hershey bar, M&M, kit Kat, or Nestle think about this children. There are many chocolate companies who are slave free and taste as good as the big chocolate makers. The link below should be very helpful when you are on your way to buy some chocolates for the holidays.
Another way you can be involved is by writing a letter to this companies, telling them you will not be buying their products until they stop child slavery. Also you can writie to legislators who let them get away with it. The link below will give you the necessary contact informations and sample letters you can use to write this companies.
And yes; life is full of boxes of chocolates, but now you have the power to decide which ones you are going to give and get.
"Who ever causes one of this little ones who belive in me to stumble, it would be better for him if a milestone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea" Mark 9:42
Image Credit: Free2 work, hershey.com, m&m.com
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