Tony’s Chocolonely: Most Socially Responsible Chocolatier Global 2020

The world’s love affair with chocolate is an enduring one, but the sweet treat can be the product of dark practices. Modern slavery and illegal child labour still exists on cacao farms in some parts of the world – cacao is the tree and the bean, cocoa is the fermented product – but conscientious chocolatiers are committed to eradicating the practice. One such champion of change is Tony’s Chocolonely. The Dutch chocolatier takes issue with the status quo, where a few giants dominate the world market and drive the price of cocoa so low that it creates a poverty trap for farmers and contributes to illegal child labour and modern slavery. There are millions of cacao farms worldwide and many more chocolate consumers, but the riches stay concentrated in corporations ruled more by profit margins than social progress. Tony’s Chocolonely, “crazy about chocolate and serious about people”, has developed a three-point roadmap to make slave-free chocolate the worldwide norm, leading by example. It works with cacao farming communities, encouraging them to allow children to pitch in after school and learn about the family trade, but to understand and enforce the firm line against illegal child labour. It advises retailers and consumers to demand slave-free chocolate. Tony’s Chocolonely puts its advocacy to action throughout its operations by investing in long-term partnerships with cacao co-operatives to increase productivity and profits. It prides itself on the transparency and traceable accountability of its entire supply chain. Tony’s Chocolonely issues an open call to “choco-friends” to collaborate on best practices and unite to advance a common cause. The CFI.co judging panel applauds the company’s efforts to inspire an industry to action, and declares Tony’s Chocolonely as winner of the 2020 award for Most Socially Responsible Chocolatier (Global).