When you say lots of milk, dark, white, peanut, hazelnut, there are a thousand and one forms of chocolate that can appeal to every palate. But do you know the story of chocolate, which has a thousand and one varieties, which is much more bitter than dark?
Recently, he talked about why the countries in Africa have clear and smooth borders as if they were drawn with a ruler. Years of colonial activities in Africa We announced that. However, precious metals are not the only thing exploited in Africa…
with you today To the human tragedy experienced for the sake of chocolate in Africa and we will take a look at the nature massacre.
If we need to take a brief look at the past story of chocolate, which is an indispensable part of our sweet crisis, before its current story…
- A Mayan drawing prohibiting the public from touching chocolate
Chocolate, which is encountered in many foods in daily life and consumed by almost everyone, Although discovered by the Mayans around 1900 BC Aztec King II. We meet in the Montezuma (or Moktezuma) Period.
According to many historians, who came to visit the Aztec King To Christopher Columbus and Hernan Cortes personally II. Chocolate is served in golden jugs by Montezuma. The explorers liked this treat very much and told the king that this taste was not found in Europe. The explorers, who returned to Europe after obtaining the necessary permissions, raw materials and recipes, exhibit this taste in their countries and are met with intense interest.
It takes at least 4 years of effort to make a chocolate waterfall.
cocoa tree
As we all know, chocolate is produced from the seeds of the fruit of the cocoa tree. So to be able to eat chocolate cocoa tree and its beans we need.
Although we think of it as “let’s plant a cocoa tree today and eat chocolate tomorrow”, it is not that easy because it is actually not that easy. A newly planted cacao tree cannot bear fruit for the first 4 years.. This means that you have to take care of a tree that you cannot produce even a gram of chocolate from a tree for 4 years and you cannot get a product for 4 years.
Far from licking his finger, the one holding the chocolate almost had his finger cut off!
“From past to present”holding honey licks his finger‘ they say. It is not known whether the honey holder really licks his finger, but the chocolate holder (more precisely, the cocoa bean) never licks it. He even barely saves his finger from being cut, let alone licking it.
Come together now, in our happiest moments, the chocolate that always ends up right next to us, from human smuggling to child labor and almost murdering nature. to the dark file let’s take a look.
A tiny area of the world cures billions of people’s chocolate crisis every year.
About 7 billion tons of chocolate are produced every year around the world. This is actually that each person consumes about one kilo of chocolate per year pointing out. As such, we need enough cocoa trees to produce 7 billion tons of chocolate every year, but is it that easy to grow a cocoa tree?
We mentioned that a cocoa tree cannot bear fruit in the first four years. Besides, cocoa trees are almost endemic (can only grow in a certain region) type of plant. For example, cocoa trees both heavy rainfall and high temperature whether…or. In addition, it does not like direct sunlight and wind. This makes growing cocoa trees very difficult.
Despite all these difficult conditions, the two countries of Africa Ivory Coast and Ghanaprovides 52% of the world’s cocoa tree need. If we add Indonesia, Nigeria and Ecuador to these two countries, we will increase the rate to 77%. In short, we need cocoa trees for chocolate and these countries for cocoa trees.
Again, it is useful to remind; Unfortunately, the animal that harms nature the most is humans.
There is no one who does not know that the human being is a greedy creature. This greed continues in the same way for cocoa trees. chocolate manufacturers, to produce more chocolate planting more cocoa trees. Of course, since cocoa trees can only grow in limited parts of the world, natural forests are destroyed, especially in countries such as Ivory Coast and Ghana, and cocoa tree farms are established there.
According to independent reports, because of this nature massacre, cocoa tree farms in Africa for the sake of 80% reduction in forest cover in the last 50 years seen.
The story of chocolate, which leaves a pleasant taste in most of our mouths while we eat it, may not leave a pleasant taste in our consciences.
Speaking of the damage that chocolate producers cause to nature in order to produce more chocolate, of harm to human if we don’t talk about it. Let’s examine together what kind of crimes those who brutally murdered nature committed against people.
In accordance with the sensitivity of the subject, the crimes committed by chocolate producers against people are “labor abuse” and “child workerIt would be more accurate to examine it from two different aspects under the heading ”.
Cocoa workers can’t even earn as much as the price of 1 pack of chocolate per day!
Independent research companies and human rights organizations have published many reports of cocoa workers. in harsh conditions and never fair wages It has been stated many times before. According to the data released in 2020, the daily wage of cocoa workers is only 0.90 dollars.
Let’s do some math to better understand the subject. If a cocoa worker works non-stop for a month, the money he receives at the end of the month is simply 27 dollars will be. The more painful part of this data is the expression “mean”. In other words, there are cocoa workers who work less than 0.90 dollars a day and cannot earn 27 dollars a month.
Earn half a dollar a day and get it at the end of the month 15 dollars If we consider the passing workers; We can clearly state that European chocolate producers exploit not only nature but also people and their labor to produce more chocolate.
The raw material of chocolate is the cocoa tree, and the indispensable part of the cocoa tree is child workers!
We guess that the issue that comes after the labor exploitation of cocoa workers in Africa is an issue that will disturb our consciences even more. According to the reports published by the United Nations (UN), only cocoa forests in Ghana 1.6 million child workers working, and 1.4 million of these children are between the ages of 5 and 11.
Again, according to UN reports, a significant portion of child workers smuggled from various African countries. consists of children. Although the number of child workers working in other states is not known, it is estimated that 2/5 of the world’s cocoa workers are children.
In recent years, chocolate manufacturers have taken various steps to bring global pressure and a bit of a dazzle.
Giant chocolate companies, without the need to give a brand, due to the data announced in recent years that they produce nature-friendly projects to protect forests. and they announced that they sponsored such projects, that they raise the chocolate products and distribute the raise directly to the workers, thereby improving the wages of the workers, that child labor is a bleeding wound and that they will take measures for this as well.
Although many people think that these steps are taken as a disguise, We hope that these steps are constructive solutions. we hope.
Bonus: The reaction of African workers, who have been working as cocoa workers for years but heard about chocolate for the first time, let alone tasting it, when they met chocolate:
what about you about the story that chocolate lives until it reaches us what do you think?
Resources: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 /
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