Socially conscious trick-or-treating

October 22, 7:09 AMSan Diego Natural Health ExaminerReNee Greenberg

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Ocean Beach People's Co-op in San Diego, along with other consumer co-ops and faith-based groups, are partnering with Equal Exchange to bring awareness to San Diego, and the country, about fair trade chocolate and international labor rights.  Last Halloween, they were able to distribute 45,000 pieces of fair trade chocolate along with informational cards in 200 cities across the United States.  Their goal this year is to bring awareness to  200,000 people.

Reverse trick-or-treating is a program that Global Exchange, an international labor rights group, has developed to educate families during Halloween about dangerous and abusive work conditions that children in West Africa must endure.  Their are over 200,000 children forced to work under slave-like conditions in the cocoa fields of the Ivory Coast.  These children work on the 2 million farms that grow the cocoa for the Halloween season.   These cocoa farms produce 70% of the world's cocoa beans.  The cocoa beans are mixed into mass produced chocolate by global chocolate companies like Hersheys, Mars, Nestle, Cargill, Russel Stover and ADM.  Fair trade chocolate companies help to deliver more of the profit back to these farming families.

 It is not too late to order your fair trade trick-or-treat kits through Global Exchange to participate in the reverse trick-or-treating program.  Alternatively, go to Equal Exchange to print out your information card about fair trade practices and tape a piece of fair trade candy to the card.  When you are out with your little ones trick-or-treating, hand out your fair trade goodies and cards to your neighbors and friends.  This is a great way to teach your children and your neighbors to be compassionate and learn about injustices happening to children in other countries.

Fair trade chocolate for Halloween can be purchased online for your convenience from the following fair trade companies:  SERRV International, Global Exchange, and Dagoba Organic Chocolate.

Purchase organic, fair trade chocolate in San Diego from Ocean Beach People's Co-op, Whole Foods Market, Jimbos, and Henry's- and local organic markets. 

Learn more about slave labor of children in the cocoa industry.  Support fair trade chocolate this Halloween and throughout  the holiday season and do your part to help stop these injustices.