NATIONAL FAIR TRADE CONFERENCE

THE REAL COST OF CHOCOLATE

AUTHOR: Larissa Kanhai

FEATURING: Don Pilar Ramirez, Fundacion REDDOM

“8 out of 10 people worldwide are lovers of chocolate…. the other 2 are liars!

We just had a dynamic presentation from Pilar who taught us here at the 8th annual Canadian Fair Trade Conference more about “Comercio Justo” in Dominican Republic.  Pilar laid the foundation on the context of the DR, the story of chocolate, the day in a life of a DR farmer, and concluded with discussion of the real cost of chocolate.
Many of us may be familiar, even a little, with the journey of the cacao seed to the delicious chocolate that us North Americans enjoy, for some of us on a daily basis! But the personal story of an enigmatic producer like Pilar painted us a vivid picture (with the help of actual pictures) of what Comercio Justo/Fair Trade really looks like – this realistic picture is vital for those of us talking the talk of fair trade in our advocacy, businesses, and non-profits.
One significant query that fair trade supporters get is around, how do we really know that this product is actually fair?  Well, Pilar admits to us that it is not easy to follow all of the fair trade rules, but he understands the impact of what he’s a part of.  Auditors come and ask him about, for example, the health of the birds, whether their workers in the fields are being paid, and asks with scrutiny about child labour.  
Very transparently, Pilar told us about children’s’ interest and engagement in cacao production.  They do not work in the fields, and while they may bring food to a parent in the field on occasion, they ONLY do so after school and soccer and activities, these activities would never be cut short.  He convivially told us about how sometimes kids like to collect leftover seeds in the field after harvesting to try and find a missed seed here and there.  He tells us about someone who would collect this in a box, take these extra seeds to the market to sell, and then using the money to buy his girlfriend a coca cola (aww).  Pilar conveys that this is a far cry from the real and actual risk of kids being kidnapped from schools to work on cacao plantations to make that same chocolate we may be eating.
But insights also go both ways! In the fair trade movement in Canada, we can feel isolation and feel like our efforts aren’t having the impact we intend.  But for other allies in fair trade here at the conference, all you are doing is inspiring one another.  Pilar told us, “they have all kinds of fair trade products here in Canada – coffee, chocolate…beer! They’ll never believe me in Dominican Republic that I had fair trade beer!”  
He concluded with the real cost of chocolate and stated plainly, just 2% more for the farmer will make him happy, make his wife happy, and will even impact the land around him.  Just 2%.

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But for other allies in fair trade here at the conference, all you are doing is inspiring one another.  Pilar told us, “they have all kinds of fair trade products here in Canada – coffee, chocolate…beer! They’ll never believe me in Dominican Republic that I had fair trade beer!”  
He concluded with the real cost of chocolate and stated plainly, just 2% more for the farmer will make him happy, make his wife happy, and will even impact the land around him.  Just 2%.
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