Chocolate sector agrees to resolve cocoa farmers' plight

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Chocolate giants and governments from more than 65 countries have pledged to resolve issues of human rights violations, deforestation, child labor and fair prices at a conference with cocoa and cacao farmers in Berlin.

Farmers have been plagued by low cocoa prices, and a rise in child labor, exploitation and climate change have aggravated their problems.

Speakers at the World Cocoa Conference (WCC) maintained that the farmers' share in the 100 billion dollar value chain is barely six percent. They also highlighted plummeting prices that resulted in savings of more than 3.5 billion US dollars for chocolate companies last year.

The sector's profit has not trickled down to the farmer's welfare, they claimed. “Business as usual in the cocoa sector is no longer an option. We have to break the mold,” Jean-Marc Anga, executive director of the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) said.

The average cocoa price of 3,000 dollars per ton has plummeted to 1,917 dollars, the lowest in the last decade.

Low prices are said to have driven farmers to the brink of poverty and plummeting prices have also contributed to a steep increase in child labor on cocoa farms.

In a declaration released on the concluding day of the four-day conference on Wednesday, stakeholders agreed to ensure sustainable production, consumption and management to settle unresolved issues.

Delegates also agreed that “child labor does not have a place in a sustainable value chain."

"As such, we commit to increasing efforts, efficiency, and cooperation, aiming to eradicate it from the cocoa sector.”

According to a recent report, an estimated 2.1 million children work in cocoa fields in Ivory Coast and Ghana alone.

Some of the actions proposed to bail out farmers include setting up a national and global trust fund for producers, a pension scheme in Ghana for all farmers, and a “rainforest premium” to support deforestation prevention.

Logging and bushfires were identified “as drivers of deforestation and forest degradation,” delegates mentioned in the declaration, recognizing the strong contribution the cocoa sector can make to the restoration of forests and resilient landscapes.

“We commit to work together as a whole cocoa supply chain to end deforestation and promote forest protection and restoration,” they said.

"Without farmers, there is no cocoa. All actors should work together to create an enabling environment to professionalize cocoa farming."

[Top Image: Cocoa pods on a farm in Anyama, Ivory Coast, July 21, 2017. /VCG Photo]