The Dark side of chocolate

SwedWatch has carried out a survey of the working conditions on cocoa farms in the Ivory Coast and Ghana. People producing the cocoa used in the chocolate sold in Sweden are often forced to work in very difficult conditions.

Many of these are children and young people. The survey shows that the chocolate companies operating in Sweden, Kraft Foods, Nestlé and Cloetta Fazer, cannot guarantee that their products are produced in a way that respects human rights. The conditions for both farmers and workers are worst in the Ivory Coast. Kraft Foods products include the well-known chocolate brands of Marabou, Toblerone, Twist, Dajm and Japp. Cloetta Fazer’s products include Dumle, Kexchoklad, Geisha and Plopp, while Nestlé markets After Eight, Kit Kat and Smarties. A fundamental reason why people working on the cocoa farms are so vulnerable is that the farmers are paid too little for their cocoa. This has serious repercussions for both the farmer and the workers.