Tag Archive for cocoa

Sweet–and Fair–Fundraising

February 4, 2020 Comments Off on Sweet–and Fair–Fundraising

There’s a knock at the door.  It’s a youngster with chocolate bars.  You buy because you want to support the soccer team.  Warning: in your eagerness to help one group, you may be harming another.  Do you know where the cocoa beans came from?  Were the growers paid fairly for their work?  Enough to feed their families and meet basic needs?  Most likely, the workers, including very young children, are living in poverty in another country, and their hard work doesn’t earn them enough to climb out of hardship. 

Meanwhile, fundraisers enjoy big profits, passing on a tiny amount to your soccer kids.  Next time your group wants to raise money, suggest a compassionate alternative, Fair Trade Chocolate.  For example, there is Divine Fair Trade Chocolate, the first brand in the world to be farmer-owned (www.divinechocolate.com).  Or try one of these which are fair to the growers and kind to the earth: www.equalexchange.com, www.sweetearthchocolates.com,www.ChocolateBar.com, or www.VosgesChocolate.com.  Some offer discounts for fundraisers. 

What a deal — the kids raise money, social consciousness, and quality of life for families all at the same time!

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My Dreams are Sweet

January 20, 2020 Comments Off on My Dreams are Sweet

SWEET DREAMS

I had a dream—like Martin’s—
But in my dream
            Cats were leashed and dogs roamed free,
            The President was chosen by God,
            All days were sunny, with rain only at night,
            And the whole world loved chocolate.
In that dream
            My friend was interesting, not rich or Black,
            People talked to Gramps, not to me about him,
            Wheelchair basketball was on Monday night TV,
            And dinner was fair-trade chocolate.
Then I saw
            Doctors fighting to save all lives,
            Wardens taking none,
            Soldiers idly playing checkers,
            Now that bullets were just Hershey Kisses.
All that empty space:
            Soup kitchens, with no clients to serve,
            Sweatshops replaced by homes,
            Jails, since the Rule became Golden,
            Plus cups half-filled with cocoa.
I had a dream.  Like Martin,
When I wake
I refuse
To leave it behind.

                                        Jackie O’Donnell

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I Have a Dream, Too

January 16, 2017 Comments Off on I Have a Dream, Too
 .

 

                          SWEET DREAMS

 

I had a dream—like Martin’s—
But in my dream
            Cats were leashed and dogs roamed free,
            The President was chosen by God,
            All days were sunny, with rain only at night,
            And the whole world loved chocolate.

 

In that dream
            My friend was interesting, not rich or Black,
            People talked to Gramps, not to me about him,
            Wheelchair basketball was on Monday night TV,
            And dinner was fair-trade chocolate.

 

Then I saw
            Doctors fighting to save all lives,
            Wardens taking none,
            Soldiers idly playing checkers,
            Now that bullets were just Hershey Kisses.

 

All that empty space:
            Soup kitchens, with no clients to serve,
            Sweatshops replaced by homes,
            Jails, since the Rule became Golden,
            Plus cups half-filled with cocoa.

 

I had a dream.  Like Martin,
When I wake
I refuse
To leave it behind.

                                        Jackie O’Donnell

 


					

									


				
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Sad News: No More Chocolate

			
				
	November 18, 2014
	 
	Comments Off on Sad News: No More Chocolate


				
				

										
Get out your Kleenex, fellow chocolate-lovers.  Soon the cocoa plant–chocolate is made from its seeds–may be be no more.  Disease and pests are killing off cocoa crops, thanks in large part to monoculture, a cultivation method that makes the plants especially susceptible.


The main cause, though, according to many experts, falls in the lap of business. Although large corporations rake in the money, farmers have little incentive to grow cocoa because they make less than $1 a day doing so–not enough to support a farmer and his family.


Researchers are studying ways to save cocoa, which will take years. Right now, farmers can help by using sustainable farming methods in place of monoculture. They’re willing to do that, but it will take teamwork, with governments and us, so that farming this crop is practical.  Governments need to enact Fair Trade Agreements. Note that this isn’t “free Trade” but “FAIR Trade.” That’s a system in which more of the money goes to the actual workers and small farm owners rather than big agribusiness (people who’ve never even stepped foot on a farm).  As for us, we should buy Fair Trade chocolate for ourselves and as gifts, thus supporting the farmers who will then cultivate more cocoa for us to enjoy.


This is something to think about during this upcoming season of indulging ourselves.  Save chocolate and improve peoples’ lives: urge our legislators to make Fair Trade agreements, and buy Fair Trade chocolate.


 


 

					

									


				
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