Tony’s Chocolonely, a company devoted to making delicious chocolate, is the perfect example of a business with ingrained Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental, Social and Governance principles. This article will explore how Tony’s was created with a purpose beyond profits, seeking to eradicate slavery from the cocoa business by ensuring that the supply chain is efficient and ethical. We will delve into the social responsibility policy, strategies, and practices of Tony’s Chocolate, covering issues of promoting human rights, sustainability, and transparency. When most people see Tony’s Chocolonely's vibrant packaging on the shelves of Trader Joe’s or at the checkout line of their local supermarket, they probably don’t realize the mission behind their wrapper. So, how exactly does this chocolate company work to enhance the lives of cocoa farmers while simultaneously driving business growth?
The Problem: Exploitation in Chocolate
The most severe issue within the cocoa and chocolate industries is the abuse of human rights, which predominantly occurs in West Africa - where 60% of the world’s cocoa is produced. The cocoa supply chain is filled with sweatshops, child labour, and chronic poverty, all perpetrated by large companies aiming to minimize their costs. Because of this monopoly-like system, producers receive a very minimal proportion of the proceeds, breeding such exploitation and uneven distribution of wealth.
Tony’s Chocolonely was created with these issues in mind. Their core mission is narrow but impactful: making all chocolate 100% slave free. Through their efforts, Tony’s aims to transform the chocolate industry by example, promoting a fairer, more transparent, and sustainable approach to sourcing cocoa beans.
Tony’s 5 Sourcing Principles
Tony’s CSR and social responsibility lies in 5 key pillars, called Tony’s 5 Sourcing Principles, which guarantees that the cocoa of the company is not only tasty but also ethically grown.
Cacao Beans without Traceability: Since all the cocoa beans used by Tony’s are 100% traceable, the company knows all the sources of the beans. Their supply chain does not include any cocoa beans that are associated with children and or any forced labor owing to this transparency.
Higher Prices: In addition to the Fairtrade price, which is intended to guarantee farmers a living wage, Tony’s chocolate pays several hundred dollars above the Fairtrade price. This amount includes a 10.6 million dollar premium paid out to the 17,740 farmers the company does business directly with in 2022 - 2023 with a view to enhancing their livelihoods and in turn, their communities.
Strong Farmers: With partnerships, including Kapatcheva, Ecojad, and Socoopacdi in Côte d'Ivoire, as well as ABOCFA, Asetenapa, and Asunafo in Ghana, Tony’s seeks to establish healthy relations with its partner cooperatives. These alliances ensure that the farmers benefit from proper training, increased productivity, and better access to resources.
Long Term: Tony’s invests in their future through their commitment to long-term contracts with farmers. These lengthened contracts protect farmers from the volatility many cocoa farmers face due to the fluctuating market prices
Quality and Productivity: All their current interventions and cooperatives seek to improve the quality and volume of cocoa that farmers produce, thus positioning them for economic survival in the future.
Trafficking of Forced and Child Labour
In addition to fighting against the overall enslavement and exploitation of farmers, Tony’s aims to reduce child labour in the cocoa supply chain. As their latest data shows, 1.56 million children in cocoa growing households are involved in child labor, with 30,000 of them being forcefully engaged in this labor. This is a pressing human rights issue that only industry-wide shifts can fix. However, Tony’s serves as a catalyst for this change, taking a proactive stance against this exploitation by choosing to source cocoa from areas where these issues are most prevalent: Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire.
In these 2 countries, they have partner cooperatives that provide training on labor rights, actively working to ensure that the children of cocoa farmers are in school - not on farms. Through programs like these, Tony’s is pushing to transform the chocolate industry into a fair and just one; one that people can stand behind.
Tony’s path to eradicating exploitation: A plan for what lies ahead
Tony’s, however, knows that they cannot end the exploitation of the cocoa industry by themselves. They understand that this is an issue that requires systematic change at all levels of the chocolate supply chain and by larger corporations as well. To break down this issue, Tony's has outlined a plan revolving around three principles:
Raising Awareness: Tony’s Chocolonely utilizes its platform to inform the society about the misconduct within the cocoa industry. Their marketing strategy not only focuses on selling their product, but is also about informing the public of the negative issues related to chocolate production and persuading them to make responsible decisions.
Shining the Light: They don’t just speak about change; they take action. Where Tony’s Chocolonely is distilling transparency in their supply chain management and fair pricing policies, the other chocolate companies are “watching.”
Motivating Others to Take Action: They complement their awareness program with their call to action, motivating consumers and other companies to join their fight within the cocoa industry. Their supply chain program, Tony’s Open Chain, was established in 2019 and calls on other chocolate manufacturers to work towards ethical and sustainable cocoa sourcing. They advocate for collaboration over competition, believing that this teamwork is the best remedy for eradicating forced labor within cocoa supply chains.
Tony’s Timeline: Persistent Commitment Progress
Since its launch, Tony’s Chocolonely has taken numerous steps in the direction of ending exploitation within the chocolate and cocoa industry, expanding their efforts every day. Their timelines includes:
2001: Big Choco voluntarily signs the Harkin-Engel Protocol, promising to eliminate the worst forms of child labor.
2003: Three journalists, including Teun van de Keuken, expose the chocolate industry’s bitter truths on the Dutch TV show Keuringsdienst van Waarde.
2005: Tony’s Chocolonely’s iconic red bar is born—the first 5,000 Fairtrade-certified bars are sold in the Netherlands.
2006: Tony’s bars are unequally divided to highlight the ongoing inequality in the chocolate industry.
2014: Tony’s starts paying cocoa farmers a living income premium in addition to the Fairtrade premium. Tony’s 5 Sourcing Principles are put into practice.
2016: Tony’s installs its own cocoa butter tank at Barry Callebaut, making their cocoa butter 100% traceable.
2019: Tony’s Open Chain launches, with Albert Heijn joining as the first-ever Mission Ally.
2021: Tony’s makes headlines with the Sweet Solutions campaign and four chocolate look-alike bars. Tony’s crosses the €100 million revenue mark.
2022: Ben & Jerry’s joins Tony’s Open Chain, bringing the number of Mission Allies to eight. Tony’s receives its highest B Corp score to date.
2023: Tony’s introduces Mission Lock, a legal mechanism that secures Tony’s mission for the rest of eternity, regardless of shareholder structure.
2024: Waitrose joins Tony’s Open Chain as the first retailer in the UK to become a Mission Ally. Tony’s also hits the shelves in US Walmarts.
Conclusion: Leading the Way in Ethical Chocolate
Tony’s Chocolonely is more than a chocolate business, as they campaign to end the exploitation of people in the cocoa industry. Business can be a power for positive change; through transparent supply chains, fair prices, human rights and sustainable practices, Tony’s captures this. Their CSR and, more broadly, ESG efforts illustrate a practical way in which companies can have a social conscience whilst making money, to the benefit of cocoa farmers and consumers alike. Thanks to their efforts, consumers who purchase Tony’s Chocolonely can enjoy the goodness of quality chocolate as they chip into the battle against child and forced labor within the chocolate industry.
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