About cocoa
Most of the world's cocoa is grown in a narrow belt 10 degrees either side of the equator. Here the trees grow well in humid tropical climates with regular rains and a short dry season. West Africa produces 75% of the world's cocoa in Ghana, Côte D'Ivoire, Nigeria and Cameroon. South America and Asia produce the remaining 25% in Brazil, Ecuador, Malaysia, India and Indonesia. Cocoa is grown almost entirely on smallholding farms where the whole family may work together at certain times of the year such as harvest. Cocoa farming is generally a small, unmechanised business. The fruiting patterns of cocoa trees and their location in the forest make mechanisation impracticable.
Where our cocoa comes from
In the early 1900s, William Cadbury made the decision to source cocoa, a vital ingredient for our chocolate brands, from Ghana, then known as the Gold Coast. He left São Tomé where forced labour was being used to harvest cocoa. We still source most of our cocoa from Ghana today, with some being sourced from Cote d'Ivoire, India, Indonesia and Nigeria. In the United Kingdom, all of our cocoa beans come from Ghana, although our cocoa butter and cocoa liquor may come from commodity suppliers spread more widely. Ghana has over half a million cocoa farmers working on smallholdings within communities that grow a mix of food for themselves and cash crops for onward sale.
Cadbury in Ghana
Our company has played an important role in developing the cocoa industry in Ghana, working with Ghanaians to establish high standards of cocoa farming and to play a positive role in cocoa growing communities. In fact, Ghana's cocoa is recognised as being of the highest quality and we are still working today to ensure this continues.
There are many environmental and social challenges faced by the cocoa industry. We have a responsibility to ensure that farmers and their families have a decent livelihood and that the cocoa and other crops the farmers grow yield a sufficient income to support families and villages. We are keen to make sure there is enough investment for future supply and that the highest international labour standards are observed. Our ethical sourcing strategy helps ensure this happens.
Introduction
Five years ago, reports emerged alleging use of enforced child labour in cocoa farms in West Africa (particularly the Côte d'Ivoire). Cadbury sources the great majority of our cocoa from Ghana, however this remains an issue of great concern to Cadbury. We support the view of our industry that no child should be harmed in the growing of cocoa.
Enforced child labour is unacceptable and Cadbury has been working in partnership with other industry members, Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs), West African Governments, and international organisations to respond to these issues. Cadbury and the global cocoa and chocolate industry has been taking the initiative in working to develop a long-term solution.
Tackling labour issues in cocoa growing - the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI)
Concerns about the role of children in cocoa production in West Africa led to the US-led Harkin-Engel protocol in 2001, signed in Geneva by politicians, government officials, NGOs and representatives from the cocoa industry. Signatories recognised "the urgent need to identify and eliminate child labour in violation of International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 182 with respect to the growing and processing of cocoa beans and their derivative products". The protocol included a commitment to establish the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) in 2002.
The initiative is made up of many stakeholders with members including chocolate companies, confectionery trade associations, NGOs, and trade unions.
The ICI works with the governments of cocoa producing countries to bring about positive change and improvement. The aim is to eliminate abusive labour practices and support community-based initiatives. This is a long-term process that contributes to the sustainability of the industry and to cocoa growing communities.
In July 2005 a public certification process for cocoa labour standards was introduced. This was a first for the industry and the largest agriculture programme of its kind. The next milestone is to introduce the certification process in at least 50% of cocoa farms in West Africa by July 2008.
Cadbury is represented on the International Cocoa Initiative board. Our first priority is to help raise standards but there are also other benefits of our participation, including the opportunity to share what we have learned with our cocoa sources more broadly in West Africa, in Indonesia, Nigeria and India. In India, for example, we are introducing processes to improve the sustainability of the crop. We are also active in developing on-the-ground programmes that aim to bring positive impacts to local farmers.
Cadbury's position
Cadbury is an ethical company and has a long and honourable tradition of working with cocoa producers to improve cocoa cultivation and marketing, and strong human rights and ethical trading principles, particularly in Ghana where most of our cocoa is sourced.
One child being exploited is one too many. The cocoa and chocolate industry is determined to ensure that no children are subject to abusive or unsafe labour practices in the cocoa farms of West Africa. That is why Cadbury has been working in partnership with other industry members, Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs), West African Governments and international organisations to respond to these issues. Cadbury and the global cocoa and chocolate industry has been playing an active role in working to develop a long term solution.
The global industry has set out a clear timetable for establishing a system of independent monitoring and certification of working practices. The certification system was completed by July 2005 as originally planned. It is now being rolled out by this multi-stakeholder group which includes Cadbury.
The industry is working closely with NGOs, Governments and farming networks in West Africa to raise the standard of living for cocoa farmers and their families. We all want to ensure that farmers earn a good living from their crops. At the same time, we want to ensure that children are not harmed in the growing of cocoa.
Cadbury aims to help all cocoa farmers improve their standard of living by developing sustainable crops of quality beans thus generating a higher return for their crop. We want all farmers to receive a fair return for their cocoa crops and Fairtrade in one, but not the only way of achieving this goal.
Cadbury and industry actions and responses
Cadbury's activities have been part of an international programme co-ordinated by the global chocolate and cocoa industry. The industry programme focuses on the issues surrounding the worst forms of child labour in cocoa production and to ensure that the obligations under the Harkin-Engel Protocol are met. Child work on family farms is a traditional and normal activity in the region, particularly at harvest time, however enforced or unsafe labour is unacceptable.
The protocol was developed in co-operation with the governments of the US and West Africa, the US industry and its global counterparts, the International Labour Organisation (ILO), NGOs, trade unions, consumer groups and child labour experts, and all the requirements of the protocol have been met to date. The protocol requires the industry to create, by 1st July 2005, a standard for monitoring, reporting and corrective action on child labour practices and related issues, in a country's cocoa farming sector. This key milestone has been met.
The role of the West African Governments is crucial, particularly Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire. Monitoring and reporting must have their support and also government action to enforce international labour standards is critical to ensure that children are not harmed in cocoa farming. Both these key governments are supporting the certification programme with commitment and allocation of significant resources.
The scale of the task is daunting. The West African cocoa producing region is vast and remote with 1.5 million cocoa farms, consequently monitoring every farm is impossible. In addition, the diversity and length of the cocoa supply chain means that "certifying" each bean is not possible.
Initiatives to improve labour practices and community "Well-Being"
Many factors contribute to abusive labour practices and these root causes are also being addressed by the industry, jointly with the ILO and NGOs through the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI). A range of programmes seek to educate farmers on issues, such as safe working practices and the role of children on the family farm, and to help farmers improve the quality of their production and increase their financial return.
- Farmer Field Schools
These are in their second year of operation and are run by local NGOs reaching thousands of farmers each year. The schools are run in the cocoa fields by local facilitators encouraging good farming techniques as well as giving training on issues such as HIV/AIDS awareness and hazardous work by children
- Sustainable Tree Crops Programme
This project helps farm families earn more by supporting co-operative development, and many have already seen significant income gain
- Helping "At-Risk" Children
The ILO led programme is identifying and helping at-risk children through education and vocational training.
Cadbury's actions
- Cadbury Trebor Bassett have taken a leading role within the U.K. Biscuit, Cake, Chocolate & Confectionery Association (BCCCA) in responding to the issue. Read more about our approach to cocoa sourcing here.
- Cadbury has been, and continues to be, founding and core members of the industry programme and the ICI
- We have worked with the task force that was set up under the co-ordination of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to bring together the governments of Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana, trade unions, manufacturers, cocoa producers, cocoa processors and Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs)
- Cadbury and the BCCCA have worked with organisations such UNICEF, Save the Children and Anti-Slavery International to benefit from their advice and experience.
Cadbury and Human Rights and Ethical Trading
Human Rights and Ethical Trading (HRET) is fundamental to the way Cadbury seeks to do business. Our HRET policy is backed by a rolling programme putting in place processes for compliance within all parts of our business including our supply chain. These compliances cover a number of key areas such as child labour rights and dignity at work. See our HRET policy.
As an individual company, we aim to:
- Continue to take an active role within the global industry to tackle this issue
- Communicate our standards to employees, supply chain members and other shareholders.
- Continue to review our own supply chain as part of our Human Rights and Ethical Trading policy aimed to assure that raw materials are sourced ethically.
Take a look at further sources of information listed on this site for more details on this subject.