The Dark Side of Chocolate

Today was certainly a fun, productive day. A visit to the dentist, the optometrist, the mall, Costco (where I bought the most amazing rolls) and then the market. My dad finally allowed me to buy some chocolate, which I have been craving for months now due to the fact that it really helps with my stress levels.

I came home lighthearted and energized to begin doing some more research on child labor. I searched "child labor" up on Youtube, and a video about chocolate came up.

Chocolate? I thought. What does that have to do with child labor...?

I clicked on it anyway, sat back, and opened my Hershey's bar.

The shocking truth is, the chocolate industry has been accused of using child labor to produce its cocoa beans. I almost choked on my chocolate bar the first few seconds of the video when the narrator told me about it.

The Ivory Coast in Africa is where a lot of the cocoa beans are produced, and then sent to major chocolate and confectionery companies around the world. Children are brought across the border from nearby countries like Mali, to work in these plantations. When the traffickers are convincing the children to leave their village, they promise their families to pay each child a fair wage and treat them with care. But none of that really happens.

The children are paid nothing, treated like dirty vermin, and beat to numbness. They must work hours and hours with dangerous tools in the plantations, and there is no means of escape and no way to get back home.

The chocolate industry largely denies their use of child labor, but in reality it's happening.

So this is just food for thought. I hope to raise awareness about this issue, as well as many others, through my blog. Thanks and have a great day!