By ALANNA MACDOUGALL

Chances are you’ve eaten a bar of chocolate recently. This is relatively safe to assume, as the average Canadian eats the equivalent of 1.9 kilos of raw cocoa a year (not quite the Swiss average of 4.5 kilos though comparable with the American average of 2). But while you more likely than not partake in this international delicacy, when was the last time you thought about where your chocolate bar came from?

If you care about food safety as it relates to health, the environment, and those involved in the global chain that brings food to our plates, you might want to take a closer look. Not everything that goes into your average chocolate bar may be to your taste.

The International Cocoa Organization estimates that there are approximately 14 million people around the world currently directly involved in the annual production of over 6 billion pounds of cocoa. Of this, the majority is produced under conditions that would not be acceptable in Canada.

To begin with, cocoa is one of the most heavily sprayed crops in the world. Pesticides used frequently include chemicals such as the infamous organochlorine pesticide Lindane, linked to severe health problems from blood disorders to breast cancer. Though banned in Canada and Europe, this chemical is still used in cocoa production in many developing countries.

Consistently low international market prices for cocoa beans have also meant that many cocoa farmers are not able to cover their own basic costs of production. While billions of dollars are being traded, very few producers actually receive prices that provide an adequate standard of living. 

Recent reports by the International Labour Organization and UNICEF show that these low prices have led to the use of forced child labour; thousands of children are currently being used as slave labour on cocoa farms in an attempt to keep down production costs.

Fair trade and certified fair trade chocolate offer an alternative to this system. By paying producers a basic minimum price for their cocoa as well as a "social premium" monetary benefit to their communities, fair trade means farmers and their communities can break out of the cycle of poverty created by low prices and future uncertainty. 

A "certified fair trade" label also means that cocoa production has been independently monitored, guaranteeing that no slavery was used in bringing you your chocolate. And more importantly, fair trade certification means producer and social premiums are available for community and family development so that children do not need to be coerced to work for cocoa farming to be profitable. 

Supporting small-scale cocoa farming also allows for the incorporation of organic and shade-grown techniques. This means the elimination of chemicals from a process that is normally very pesticide-heavy, and it means cocoa crops are intermixed with shade-giving trees to provide a natural protective canopy as well as healthier soil. The combination of these techniques ensures both biodiversity and the creation of a habitat for birds which can then act as a natural form of pest protection. Switching over from pesticide use to organic systems can be capital- and energy-intensive for cocoa producers, but additional organic premiums make sure farmers can cover their basic costs. And removing chemicals from the production process benefits both farmers and chocolate eaters.

Fair trade helps build a sustainable model of food production where the health and well-being of everyone matters. 

Fairly Traded,
Holistically Healthy

Any definition of health should include a myriad of considerations, from the health of our neighbours, to the health of ecosystems, to the health of those who we may not know but to whom we are linked through the global chain that brings food to our plates. 

Choosing certified fair trade products is one significant way of ensuring our food choices are based on such a holistic view of health. 

Roughly 300 producer organisations in Africa, Asia and Latin America currently are monitored, evaluated and certified by an independent international body called Fair Trade Labelling Organizations International (FLO). This represents more than 800,000 producer families in over 40 countries. National labelling organisations such as Transfair Canada licence the use of their national fair trade label to groups who sell these FLO-certified goods. 

As a result, when we see the Transfair "fair trade certified" logo on our coffee or chocolate bar, we know that the process bringing those goods to our table has been monitored and evaluated by FLO to ensure that:

• fair prices have been paid to women and men producers, 
• premiums have been paid to improve social conditions in producer communities, 
• producers have been paid in advance to assist in long-term planning, 
• democratic participation has been supported in farmer owned co-operatives, 
• no forced or child labour has been used, and 
• sustainable production methods have been supported to assist in cultivating healthy communities and habitats.

Cocoa Facts

• Ninety percent of the world’s cocoa is grown by small producers in Africa and other parts of the developing world. Eighty percent is consumed in Europe and North America. 
• The price of raw cocoa is determined entirely by commodity traders in London and New York. 
• In 2002, the average West African cocoa farm earned just $30 to $110 US per family member from cocoa. For every dollar we spend on chocolate, the farmer earns about a penny. 
• Hundreds of thousands of African children work on cocoa farms and plantations, often denied an education and suffering serious injury from machetes and heavy pesticide exposure. Thousands are lured into slave labour or sold by their impoverished families to be overworked, beaten and even killed. 

Although the chocolate industry is working to eliminate child labour and slavery by 2005, only fair trade certified products guarantee a living wage to cocoa producers and a better opportunity to educate their children, preserve the environment and develop their communities.

Learn more about fair trade products and where you can buy them.

• Transfair Canada
• Global Exchange’s Cocoa Campaign site 
• www.fairtradefederation.com 
• La Siembra Co-op (Canada's largest fair trade chocolate company) 
• www.tenthousandvillages.com 
• www.bridgehead.ca 
• The Aquarian’s Ethical Food Market 
• Eatkind.net