Consumers asked to hunt for chocolate free from child labour this Easter

TORONTO – As the Easter weekend approaches, World Vision is asking consumers to think twice about the chocolate they buy and look for products free from child labour.

As part of their 2015 No Child for Sale campaign, the “World Vision Bunny” and the “Bitter Chocolate Bunny” hit the streets of Toronto to raise awareness of the child labour that may be found in their Easter baskets.

One bunny offered samples of ethically-certified chocolate, while the other offered the dark side of the cocoa industry by offering chocolate that comes from cocoa harvested by kids as young as 5. The charity says more than 2 million children around the world work on cocoa farms.

The international relief and development organization staged the stunt in Toronto to raise awareness about the ubiquity of child labour used in some of the world’s leading producers of chocolate. The non-profit has also created “The Good Chocolate Guide” that helps bring attention to ethical producers, like Divine, a chocolate company owned by cocoa farmers.

Cheryl Hotchkiss, manager of World Vision’s No Child for Sale campaign, said most people associate child labour with other products like clothing.

“Child labour is a global problem in many different industries. Millions of kids are exploited on cocoa and sugar plantations around the world. This kind of work is hazardous and it threatens their lives and their futures. Canadians do have the power to put a stop to child labour,” Hotchkiss said in a statement.

READ MORE: Canadians unaware how many products made using child labour

Michael Sacco is the owner of the company ChocoSol based in downtown Toronto. He buys directly from Indigenous cocoa producers in Mexico, many of whom are personal friends.

“It gives us a chance to be in a meaningful relationship of reciprocity and I want to say helpfulness with them,” Sacco told Global News.

In February, the non-profit launched a petition urging the chocolate maker Cadbury and its parent company Mondelez to sell its fair trade Easter eggs in Canada. The petition has been signed more than 6,000 time.

Reena Vohra, a spokesperson for World Vision, said consumers have the ability to send companies a message with their spending choices.

“When you think about what you put your money towards, your wallet really sends a message to those companies that you want them to make a difference,” Vohra told Global News.

Fair trade-certified chocolate ensure producers are family farms that receive a guaranteed price, along with a premium that can be used for education or health services, for their harvest

And while many Canadians don’t always know if the products they are buying contribute to child exploitation, a poll conducted by Ipsos Reid found 60 per cent people surveyed said they would stop buying a product and would switch brands if they found out it was made by children.

*With files from Global’s Sean Mallen