CHOCOLATE by slaves

According to the International Labour Organisation, 30% of children under age 15 in sub-Saharan Africa engage in child labor, mostly in agricultural activities including cocoa farming. Of the 200,000 children working in the Ivory Coast cocoa industry, the ILO claims - a maximum of 6% (12,000 children) may be victims of human trafficking or slavery. - Wikipedia

It's funny how as North-American or Europen consumers, we're so ignorant on matters relating to the world, especially developping countries. I include myself in this category, because like others I consume products without knowing their origins.

I was just randomly doing a research on chocolate, looking for some pictures, when I came across a heading about child labor and chocolate. From the short research I did, here's what I can summarize: A lot of the chocolate we eat is made by children in Ivory Coast, who's ages range from 12-16, sold into slave labor and forced to work in cocoa farms in order to harvest the beans, from which chocolate is made, under inhumane conditions and extreme abuse.

Top 10 Countries with the Highest Chocolate Consumption (in pounds per head) 2000

1. Switzerland 22.3


2. Austria 20.1


3. Ireland 19.4


4. Germany 18.1


5. Norway 17.9


6. Denmark 17.6


7. United Kingdom 17.4


8. Belgium 13.2


9. Sweden 12.8
   
10. United States 11.7

*To get a better look/understanding of this, check out some vids on Youtube.