Explore Coverage

Organic Insider

Better Choices

Another Reason to Eat Organic — Child Labor and Sustainability Issues with Many Conventional Chocolate Brands

For many of us when we eat a piece of chocolate, our biggest concern is how many grams of sugar we are consuming.

Yet, how often do we ask ourselves — was this chocolate bar made with the help of child labor? Or, was the cocoa produced in a way that resulted in deforestation to the environment?

The truth about cocoa – the main ingredient in chocolate – is quite grim.

According to the US Department of Labor, more than 2 million children in Ghana and the Ivory Coast work in hazardous conditions growing cocoa. And while some companies have begun tracing their supply chains to prevent child labor, the vast majority of the 3 million tons of cocoa produced each year come from small farms in West Africa, where farmers and their children live on less than $1 per day.

Additionally, in the Ivory Coast and Ghana, 90% of their forests have been lost, and much of that deforestation was caused by the largest cocoa companies.

To help consumers understand which chocolate companies are sourcing in an ethical, environmentally-responsible way and which ones are not, Green America has unveiled its latest version of its Chocolate Scorecard.

Not surprisingly, the organic brands came out on top (almost all of them received A scores) while the largest conventional brands received C, D and F grades on the Chocolate Scorecard.

What is important to note is that aside from the USDA organic seal, there are many other certifications widely used in chocolate, such as Fairtrade, Fair Trade Certified and Rainforest Alliance.

According to Green America, however, certification programs alone are not enough to solve the underlying issues that contribute to child labor in cocoa, including farmer poverty and a lack of infrastructure. As such, the scorecard looks beyond commitments about certified chocolate to identify programs that support farmers and address child labor when it is found.

Furthermore, chocolate bars that are not certified organic may use toxic pesticides or fungicides, which not only harm the health of consumers but that of farmers as well.

So, the next time you buy a chocolate bar, remember that you aren’t just giving yourself an indulgence.

You are making a statement about what kind of company you want to financially support.

ORGANIC BRANDS THAT RECEIVED VERY HIGH SCORES ON THE CHOCOLATE SCORECARD 

Alter Eco

Equal Exchange

Shaman

Theo Chocolate

Guittard

A message from Tradin Organic

Why Tradin Organic is Prioritizing Regenerative Organic Farming

At Tradin Organic, we believe that regenerative organic farming is key to growing healthy and nutritious food ingredients — for now and for future generations.

And in Sierra Leone, we have grown the world’s first Regenerative Organic Certified cacao.

Learn more.

Go deeper

Living Maxwell

Better Choices

Organic Kaffir Limes – WOW, These are Amazing!

A while ago I did a story on gold nugget mandarins and when I saw this unknown fruit above, I couldn’t help but think of them because of the similarity of the rind.

And just as I had never seen gold nugget mandarins before, the same was true with these organic kaffir limes.

When I started asking the woman at my local organic market about kaffir limes, she quickly asked “Do you want to try one?”

With a bit of reluctance, I said “Ok, I guess.” After all, eating limes isn’t something that I normally do.

Go deeper Arrow

A message from E3Live

"My Everyday, Must-Have Green Organic Aquabotanical"

The best testimonial that I can give is that I drink this every single day, as it impacts my mood in an incredibly positive way.

E3Live + BrainON is certified organic, fresh-frozen AFA (Aphanizomenon flos-aquae) with a concentrated, aqueous, organic extract of Phenylethylamine and Phycocyanin.

Learn more.

Living Maxwell

Better Choices

The Most Important Area of Your Health That You May be Ignoring

* Intellipure machines are 40x more efficient than the standard HEPA air machines.

* The patented DFS kill zone technology is proven to remove 99.99% of all harmful viruses, fungi, molds, bacteria and particles as small as .007 micron in size.

* Each unit is made, assembled and tested in the U.S. — upstate New York.

* Use the code LIVINGMAXWELL to get 10% off your machine.

____

For those of us who truly care about health, we eat organic food, we drink ultra-purified water, we exercise, we meditate, we do yoga, we have a positive attitude, we use clean personal care products and the list goes on and on and on.

Go deeper Arrow

Living Maxwell

Better Choices

Another Reason to Support Organic – The 59 Pesticide Residues Found in Our Water Supply

When people talk about organic food, we mostly focus on the importance of eating food that is free of synthetic chemicals, genetically-modified ingredients and artificial growth hormones.

Yet, what we also need to be mentioning is that conventionally-grown food means that our soil is getting sprayed with an astronomical amount of toxic pesticides, which ends up polluting our public water supply.

According to the EPA, we use about 1.1 billion pounds of chemicals per year, 80% of which are used for agricultural purposes.

And what impact has this had on the quality of our public water supply?

Go deeper Arrow
livingmaxwell: a guide to organic food & drink