Ivory coast is the worlds largest cocoa supplier, and alassane ouattara, the internationallyrecognized leader, is asking cocoa companies to. In cote divoire, child slave labor is the main labour force, which has made cote divoire notorious for its. France imposes a head tax to undertake a public works programme, inciting uprisings amongst the population. More than 2 million children in the ivory coast and ghana are being deprived of their childhoods, either working in extremely hazardous conditions or working in lieu of going to school, so that we can get our. The top four producers ivory coast, nigeria, ghana and indonesiaare all in the bottom half of nations by percapita gdp. No wonder, for the economic climate vagaries are variable as nowhere else. Jerry renault, a freshman at trinity high school, has a confrontation with the school gang, the vigils. The people who live in the southwest quadrant of the country, where most of the cocoa is grown, have been engaged in an escalating tugofwar. Ivory coast is established as a french colony, with defined eastern and western boundaries. Soldiers mutiny in ivory coast, reviving memories of civil war the. In response to the uprisings, france establishes a system of forced labour requiring each adult male to work for ten days a year without compensation. Cocoa is stacking up in the ivory coast s docks in one of africas most verdant tropical gardens, the ivory coast, cocoa is the most tasty bean. West africa collectively supplies two thirds of the worlds cocoa crop, with ivory coast leading production at 1.
Ivory coast s ethnic strife is the most recent chapter in cocoas troubled history. As global demand for chocolate booms, dirty beans from deforested national parks. These assignments vary, depending on the person, and intend to. Slavery, politics, and the ethics of business is a lively and highly readable account of the events surrounding the libel trial in which cadbury bros. The ivory coast exports nearly half the worlds cocoa. Many farmers are migrants who sought refuge in the forests during droughts to the north in mali and burkina faso in the 1970s and 1980s, and during the ivory coast s civil war from 2002 to 2004. By 2000, the ivory coast was heading for civil war. A tale of chocolate, from farm to family by elizabeth zunon published by bloomsbury usa isbn. The ivory coast provides 40% of the worlds supply of cocoa, the key ingredient in chocolate, and war and ongoing political instability have badly disrupted the industry. For the most part, chocolate and war arent usually seen together, except maybe on ultra trendy dessert menus.
More strikingly, the top ten countries ranked by chocolate consumed. Chocolate industry drives rainforest disaster in ivory coast. Sounds like what happens inside a chocoholic dieter faced with a platter of triple deluxe fudge truffles. Ivory coast cote divoire leads the world in production and export of the cocoa beans used in the manufacture of chocolate, as of 2012, supplying 38% of cocoa produced in the world. The austere, incorruptible leader who has shut eritrea off from the world in a permanent state of war and conscripted every adult into the armed forces. This free synopsis covers all the crucial plot points of the chocolate war. Cote divoire is on the verge of a new civil war between the army loyal to the defiant laurent.
But the chocolate war is on a scale all its own, dating back 24 years to the early days of the common market. The vigils want to ruin archies reputation before the school ends, but theyre plans backfire on them. The dictator who grew so rich on his countrys cocoa crop that he built a 35storeyhigh basilica in the jungles of the ivory coast. Beyond the chocolate war continues the story from the end of chocolate war.
The chocolate slaves of the ivory coast end slavery now. A chart showing ivory coast as producing the most cocoa in the world is displayed at the chocostory, museum of cocoa and chocolate in brussels. Ivory coast sweetens up with first locally made chocolate. To the relief of chocolate makers such as nestle and cadbury schweppes, the cocoa war has not dented ivory coast s output last year it harvested 1. Great chocolate war reveals dark side of europe the new. Sparknotes is here for you weve got everything you need to ace or teach. Smallscale fighting over land in the cocoarich southwest is at the heart of the larger civil war. Cocoa production in ivory coast and the challenge of. It is the worlds largest producer of cocoa, and president alassane ouattara has invested in roads, bridges and other infrastructure projects that.
As its name suggests, elephants once abundantly roamed the rainforests of ivory coast. Ivory coast produces around twofifths of the worlds cocoa, with 60% of its revenue coming from exports of that crop. For roughly a decade, cote divoire has been bitterly divided by a civil war between its dry muslim north and its fertile christian south. Eighty percent of the worlds cocoa, the main ingredient of chocolate, is produced by millions of growers in the ivory coast and ghana, according to the nonprofit corpwatch. A case study on climate change and the chocolate we eat posted on september, 2016 by andrew the ivory coast has featured prominently in this years commodity news with reports of cocoa shipments falling far below levels of previous years. Or maybe between rival chocolate manufacturers during the holidays. The ivory coast and ghana gave in to pressure from the global chocolate industry and suspended a ban on cocoa sales. Chocolate lovers everywhere ought to be paying close attention. Ivory coast nationalises its beans financial times. The dark side of chocolate is a 2010 documentary film about the exploitation and slavetrading of african children to harvest chocolate still occurring nearly ten. Many of them live and work in the ivory coast, a former french colony. And it remains a vivid reminder of the stubborn obstacles to unity that europe still.
Hershey, nestle and mars wont promise their chocolate is. Chocolate the very word conjures up a hint of the forbidden and a taste of the. The systemically low prices in cocoa have drastic consequences for farmers and their families. The vigils, headed by archie costello, specialize in making assignments that other students have to complete.
The cocoa trade of ivory coast is mired in the exploitation of children, war and corrupt profits for ivorian officials and western big chocolate business. Today it provides some 40 percent of the worlds crop. I chose this book because i found the first chocolate war to be very interesting and thought i should continue the series. Provides an overview of ivory coast, including key events and facts about this west african country recently plagued by civil war. Ivory coasts cocoa and coffee plantations relied on immigrant. Oec reports that cocoa beans and related products, such as chocolate and cocoa paste, accounted for over 40% of the countrys export values in 2015. The ivory coast is a former french colony, and it is the top contributor to the global chocolate supply, that is why the war has caused that much economic damage. The country is on the brink of civil war, forcing the price of cocoa, the main ingredient in chocolate, to a near 32year high, writes orla ryan. Hostility increased and raids on foreign troops and civilians rose.
Chocolate war erupts in ivory coast world news the. Abou traore, 15, from burkina faso, sits against a tree drying the sweat on his face with his tshirt on a cocoa farm near the village of niambly, ivory coast, where he was working in march. This led to increased poverty and ethnic tension exploited by new and weaker leaders. Grandpa cacao, a tale of chocolate, from farm to family. The dark side of chocolate 2010 full documentry youtube. By jacopo dettoni, think africa 16311 mar 20, 2011 8.
Except that this is ivory coast and the fight is not for gold or diamonds or timber or oil. Some day or another, the tugof war for control of ivory coast had to come down to chocolate, or more specifically, cocoa. For the most part, chocolate and war arent usually seen together. Chocolate war erupts in ivory coast world news the guardian. Africa ivory coast sweetens up with first locally made chocolate. Ivory coast, chocolate giants team up to make cocoa production more sustainable ivory coast is the worlds biggest cocoa producer, but agriculture of the plant has led to mass deforestation. Most of the cocoa in the ivory coast is grown by small farmers, typically on plots of 7 to 10 acres. Ivory coast, chocolate giants team up to make cocoa. The nation is the worlds largest producer of cocoa, the raw material for chocolate. Although most of the fighting ended by late 2004, the country remained split in two, with a rebelheld north and a governmentheld south citation needed.
In the ivory coast, cocoa is more valuable than gold. Initially migrant workers from across west africa were invited to the country to share in its farmland, helping ivory coast become the worlds top producer. The first ivorian civil war was a conflict in the ivory coast that began in 2002. Chocolate industry drives rainforest disaster in ivory coast this article is more than 2 years old exclusive. The west african country of ivory coast also known as cote divoire has been rocked by civil conflict as forces loyal to opposition leader alassane ouattara seek to oust incumbent president. Ivory coast is the worlds biggest cocoa producer but for a long time it couldnt process the cocoa beans into chocolate. Cocoa bean harvesting entails cutting the pods from the trees, slicing them open, scooping out the beans, covering them in baskets or on mats to ferment, and then drying the beans in the sun. This beautifully illustrated story connects past and present as a girl bakes a chocolate cake with her father and learns about her grandfather harvesting cacao beans in west africa.
64 776 1536 494 861 1015 1403 1148 1297 859 1117 900 1193 472 1540 1013 1378 484 211 55 290 1149 431 1198 1103 1274 134 1132 18 1643 1268 1578 326 356 1089 161 1285 1063 673 1302 311 1057 533 405