The Spoiled Supply Chain of Child Labor

Abstract

The complexities of human trafficking make this criminal activity one of the most difficult and dehumanizing movements to abolish. While the eradication of slave labor has the attention of government agencies and major manufacturers, it does not have a comprehensive approach to facilitate quick resolutions. This chapter aims to evaluate the trafficking of children in Western Africa and the connection to chocolate manufacturers and their suppliers through the farming of cocoa along the Ivory Coast. The exploitation of children in Western Africa, a population recognized as vulnerable due to their long-standing societal challenges including poverty and lack of education, has festered in recent decades. Even under the assurance of change to these practices by the leading chocolate manufacturers, this problem continues to grow with an estimated 2,000,000 children working on cocoa plantation throughout the region right now. Exploring initiatives to eradicate these practices is the focus of this chapter, at times placing the spotlight on Nestlé, the world’s largest processor of food. Considerations include an exploration of their prior, current, and speculative attempts to ratify the problem of child trafficking in their supply chain of cocoa production. From these assessments a theory of grassroots activity can provide insight into corrective measures. Changing the behaviors and attitudes of those that rely on the cocoa production, mainly the farmers, will create a lasting effect as globalization impacts the dominant values regarding the child labor that envelopes the region of the West Africa.