Nine Fair Trade Chocolate Bars

Green and Black's uploaded by Madzia Bryll

When Global Exchange starts advertising its Fair Trade Trick or Treat Action Kit, I know we are entering chocolate season.  From Halloween to Thanksgiving to Christmas to Valentine's Day to Easter chocolate lovers (like me!) have a multitude of excuses to buy and eat chocolate.  Yum.

Unfortunately, as John Robbins points out in his post, Is There Child Slavery in Your Chocolate?, some chocolate companies don't treat their cocoa farmers well and/or use child labor.  That's where buying Fair Trade certified chocolate comes in.

According to Fair Trade USA:

"Even though Americans spend $13 billion a year on cocoa products, many small-scale family cocoa farmers face tremendous instability. They are often forced to sell their harvest to local middlemen who use rigged scales or misrepresent world prices. Recent media reports of child slavery on West African cocoa estates show the stark contrast between the delicious treat we enjoy and the often difficult working conditions of the people who produce it.

Fair Trade certification ensures that cocoa farmers receive a fair price for their harvest, creates direct trade links between farmer-owned cooperatives and buyers, and provides access to affordable credit. On Fair Trade farms, slave labor is strictly prohibited and farms are inspected to ensure that Fair Trade standards are being met. "

I can't say I always buy Fair Trade chocolate, but I want to, and part of what stops me is not knowing all of my options.  After doing some searching around, I came up with a pretty good list (Who knew Cadbury Dairy Milk was Fair Trade certified?).

1. Alter Eco
2. Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate Bar
3. Dagoba Dark Chocolate Conacado Bar
4. Divine
5. Equal Exchange
6. Green and Black's
7. Shaman Organic Chocolates
8. Sweet Earth Chocolates
9. Theo's Chocolates

Let me know if more chocolate bars should be added to the list.

Related posts and articles:

• 13 Decadent and Fair Trade Chocolates on The Daily Green
• A Guide to Fair Trade, Organic Chocolate Companies on Ezine Articles
• Dairy Milk in Canada = Fair Trade on One Tiny Starfish
• Dark Pleasures for Eco-Ethical Chocoholics on Mother Nature Network
• Fair Trade Chocolate for Halloween a Real Treat on Care2  
• New 2010 Fair Trade Trick or Treat Kit on Growing a Green Family
• Where to Get Fair Trade Chocolate in Los Angeles on Green LA Girl

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