The Worst Forms of Child Labour in the Cocoa Industry. free from the use of forced, child or trafficked labour. 3

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1 Information Sheet: The Worst Forms of Child Labour in the Cocoa Industry Fast Facts: > Canadians consume an average of 5.5 kg of chocolate each year, or the equivalent of eating nearly 2,600 M&M s. 1 > In 2010/ million tons of cocoa was produced globally. 2 > Approximately 95 percent of the chocolate sold around the world today is not certified to be free from the use of forced, child or trafficked labour. 3 > An estimated 1.5 million family farmers produce the majority of the world s cocoa in West Africa, with almost 70 per cent alone produced in Ghana and Côte d Ivoire. 4 > About 90 per cent of cocoa farms in the region are small family farms, less than 12 hectares (ha), averaging 4 ha each. 5 This is roughly equivalent to 10 to 3.5 baseball diamonds! > The use of child labour on farms in West Africa is one of the darkest stains on the chocolate industry, with more than one million children in the region employed in the cocoa sector International Cocoa Organization (2012) Production of Cocoa Beans. Accessed on: 17 July Available from: 3 Ten Campaign Briefing Paper, 19/09/ Years of Unfulfilled Promises to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labour in West Africa s Cocoa Sector. Available from: 4 Tim Newman and Elizabeth O Connell. Still Time to Raise the Bar: The Real Corporate Social Responsibility Report for the Hershey Company (Global Exchange, Green America and the International Labor Rights Forum, 2011). 5 International Labour Office (ILO) Rooting Out Child Labour from Cocoa Farms Paper No. 1: A Synthesis Report of Five Rapid Assessments (Geneva, International Labour Office, 2007).

2 > Côte d Ivoire and Ghana are the world s two largest cocoa producers. 7 > There were an estimated 1.8 million children working on cocoa-related activities in 2008 in Cote d Ivoire and Ghana. 8 Some of these children were trafficked from Mail and Burkina Faso. To address the problem of children working 3D - dirty, dangerous and degrading - jobs in the cocoa industry, it will take a coordinated and combined effort of corporations, governments, nongovernmental organizations, farmers and individual consumers to reach the goal of 100 per cent ethically sourced cocoa by This is a goal that has been set by many chocolate industry leaders, such as Lindt, Mars, Nestle and Ferrero. These companies have publically announced their commitment to making ethical cocoa products only by But this list needs to expand to include all importers and manufactures of cocoa products. Thankfully, through organizations such as the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI - created by the cocoa industry), Fairtrade International, Rainforest Alliance and UTZ, there are tools and resources available to the chocolate industry to assist them in their efforts to access and use only ethical cocoa. As a first step in Canada, we want to encourage all chocolate manufacturers and importers to make a public commitment and plan for eliminating child exploitation in their industry. Canadians can be part of the solution by buying products that are certified as free of child labour such as those with the Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance or UTZ labels. They can also help encourage Canadian companies to produce and import ethical chocolate by asking them to meet the challenge of using only ethical cocoa set by their industry colleagues and make their plans to do so public. 6 Fairtrade International. Tackling Child Labour in the Chocolate Industry: What Role Can Fairtrade Play? (2009) accessed January A Partnership to Combat Child Labour in the Chocolate and Cocoa Industry, ILO 8 An estimate based on data gathered by the Payson Centre for International Development and Technology Transfer Tulane University in their study entitled Oversight of Public and Private Initiatives to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labour in the Cocoa Sector in Cote d Ivoire and Ghana. p.7.

3 What does the problem look like? Cocoa farming can be found in many countries, from the countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, to countries in Asia and South America. Children are involved in cocoa farming all over the world. Unfortunately, it is likely that the number is larger when one considers the farms in other countries. Most jobs connected to cocoa harvesting and production are unsafe for children and can threaten their long-term physical, mental and emotional development. Children working directing in cocoa harvesting may: > carry heavy loads and work in extreme heat; > use machetes to clear land, harvest the cocoa and open the pods which results in severe injuries to the hands and arms; > be exposed to harmful chemicals in the form of pesticides from mixing, apply or just working around them; > work very long hours with little pay, very poor nutrition and no or limited access to health care; > be victims of violence or abuse at the hands of employers or others involved in the industry. Also, children may be drawn into 3D jobs to support the local cocoa harvesting industry, such as prostitution or domestic service. In many cases, children are working in unsafe conditions as part of a small family farm. In these cases they may work alongside adults or older family members, but doing adult work. This, combined with no or little access to nutritious food, education or health care because of family poverty, makes their work dirty, dangerous and degrading. Some children are trafficked into jobs on cocoa farms or production facilities from their home communities to other countries (such as Mali or Burkina Faso) or neighbouring communities due to armed conflict, family violence or poverty. Children working on farms in West Africa are often related to the farm owners, but paid and slave labour are also present. In Côte d Ivoire, the largest

4 supplier of cocoa on the global market, about 10,000 child labourers are trafficked from neighbouring countries and sold into slave labour for little or no wages. 9 The reasons children engage in labour vary. Poverty is often the main explanation for child labour. Cocoa prices steadily declined in recent decades and extreme price volatility on global markets can make it extremely difficult for small family-owned cocoa farms to generate a sustainable livelihood. 10 In some cases, poor prices result in poor wages that cause many adults to take jobs in other industries. This can result in children being the only labour force available for farmers. In some instances children work as an alternative to hired labour on a family farm. 11 In other instances children have to labour for supplemental income when parents cannot work because they are aging, unhealthy or weak. Loss of one or both parents can also encourage child labour. However, not all child labour is to supplement household income. In some instances, children engage in employment on cocoa farms because parents cannot afford education for some or all of their children, because children are not interested in attending school, because schools are limited in availability or quality, or because children desire the practical experience gained from labour to ensure employment in adulthood. In one study on child labour on cocoa farms in West Africa, it was found that this desire for experience was, alongside economic interests, the main reason underlying child labour. 12 Meanwhile, the high cost of adult labour and its increased scarcity as adults move to urban areas or migrate for employment has increased the demand for child labour. In some cases family members also force children into labour. A study using focus groups in Ghana found that about one quarter of children might be forced either directly or indirectly into labour Tim Newman and Elizabeth O Connell ibid. 11 ILO ILO ibid; p. 16

5 How can this problem be solved? We believe that the global cocoa industry is aware of the significant problem of the number of children involved in hazardous work in cocoa farming and harvesting. This awareness is translating to actions such as: 1. Industry and government support to implement the Harkin-Engel Protocol to eliminate the worst forms of child labour in cocoa growing and processing in Côte d Ivoire and Ghana Some of the biggest names in chocolate product manufacturing Mars, Nestle, Ferrero, Lindt - have made commitments to sourcing only ethical cocoa child labour free by We believe there is an opportunity to realize significant reductions in the worst forms of child labour in cocoa farming and harvesting if corporations involved in any part of the cocoa industry - production, buying, processing, manufacturing, selling work together with governments and nongovernmental organizations to: 1. Have a plan to be child labour free: Make public their commitment and plan with milestones for achievements to source only ethical child labour free cocoa by Be Transparent: Work with third-party ethical certification organizations such as Fairtrade International, Rainforest International or UTZ that belong to the ISEAL Alliance 15 to ensure that the cocoa products are verifiably ethically sourced. If they are not able to work with an ISEAL Alliance member, they must confirm how they will ensure 100 per cent transparent and independent assessments of the operations where they are a sourcing cocoa. 14 Government representatives from the United States, Côte d Ivoire and Ghana, US National Confectioners Association, and ILO signed a declaration of action to implement the Harkin-Engel Protocol in This is combined with the signing of the original protocol by numerous chocolate manufactures and processors along with government officials and non-governmental organizations in To learn more go to 15 ISEAL Alliance works with established and emerging sustainability standards in sectors as diverse as agriculture, fishing, carbon, water and more, to develop guidance and deliver programmes that strengthen their social and environmental impacts.

6 3. Support local farmers: Support initiatives, or directly enable local farmers, to improve their farming practices to produce high-quality and environmentally sustainable produce; pay farmers a fair price for their cocoa and help educate farmers on how to eliminate exploitative and dangerous labour practices in their operations. 4. Rehabilitate child labourers: Support and/or help create initiatives that rehabilitate former child labourers including access to education, shelter, food and health care and, where possible, restore them to their families. This range of initiatives is what is needed. It is not enough to just ban children from working in cocoa. The reasons they are there doing this work are complex and a holistic approach is needed that deals with all of the factors. To join with industry colleagues across the world, we want Canadian chocolate manufacturers and importers to do the following: 1) Be aware of the problem of the worst forms of child labour in the cocoa industry. 2) Encourage them to stay current on the efforts to reduce the worst forms of child labour in cocoa farming, such as the Harkin-Engel Protocol, ICI and third party certification systems, such as Fairtrade International, Rainforest Alliance and UTZ. 3) Act to ensure that their cocoa supplies are, or will be, free from the worst forms of child labour by 2020 using a holistic approach in support of local farmers, in partnership with governments and non-government organizations. 4) Provide information to consumers about their efforts to source ethical cocoa as well as when and how they will be sourcing only ethical cocoa by 2020.