Sustainable Procurement in the Chocolate Industry

Tony's Chocolonely, Ritter Sport, Nestlé and Mars Wrigley have been named as among the most sustainable chocolate companies according to the sixth edition of the Chocolate Scorecard initiative co-ordinated by Be Slavery Free, an Australian coalition campaigning against modern slavery.

The scorecard, which ranks companies based on traceability and transparency across supply chains, whether they pay farmers a living income, efforts to prevent the use of child labour, action on climate and deforestation, how they support agroforestry and eliminating the use of harmful pesticides.

Fuzz Kitto, Co-Director at Be Slavery Free, says: "Consumers are being asked to swallow record chocolate prices, and shrinking products. The least they expect is chocolate free from slavery.

"The Chocolate Scorecard will help shoppers make smart purchases this Easter. Chocolate companies love to talk about policies and commitments, but 25 years since they promised to eliminate child labour from the supply chain, its time to stop 'cocoa washing' and innovate more effective action."

Among large chocolate companies, Tony's Chocolonely scored highest, receiving the Chocolate Scorecard's Good Egg award.

Joke Aerts, Head of Credible Scaling at Tony's Open Chain, adds: "At Tony's Chocolonely, transparency isn't just a value—it's a necessity for driving real change in the cocoa industry. The Chocolate Scorecard plays a crucial role in holding the industry accountable by ensuring companies report on the same key indicators, creating a level playing field for meaningful progress.

"We are proud to participate and honored to have received the Green Egg Award for the 6th consecutive time. The Scorecard not only motivates us to continuously improve but also pushes the entire industry to step up. We hope it inspires others to take action towards a truly fair and transparent cocoa supply chain."

Not-so-sweet reality

Meanwhile, multinational chocolate manufacturer Mondelēz, producers of Cadbury, Toblerone, Green&Black, Oreo and Daim, was given the Bad Egg award due to its lack of transparency after failing to share any details. When they participated in the 5th Edition of the scorecard they ranked 25th out of 38 large companies.

Mars Wrigley, which produces not only the Mars bar but also Snickers, Twix, Maltesers and Milky Way, was recognised for its work supporting gender equality.

Harper McConnell, Global Vice President-Cocoa Sustainability at Mars Wrigley, says: "At Mars we understand that advancing gender equality is vital to helping to improve the cocoa sector. Empowering women farmers helps strengthen cocoa-growing communities while helping to increase household incomes and preserve forests.

"We're proud of efforts like our long-term collaboration with CARE on the Women for Change program which, as of 2024, reached 101,000 members, 75% of whom are women, and resulted in US$20m in total savings and credits and US$13m in loans."

For the year as a whole, the latest figures show an improvement in transparency across the industry, with 82% of companies sharing information on child labour, compared to 45% in 2023. The industry reports the number of children experiencing hazardous labour conditions is slightly down, but experts warn they are still only finding less than half of actual cases.

The figures also show progress on the use of pesticides; however, this was not sufficient enough to address the chronic exposure of children to harmful chemicals. The number of child labourers exposed to harmful pesticides tripled over five years to almost one in three, along with an increase in injuries, health impacts and level of care needed. It is believed to be dangerous for pregnant mothers.

Bitter price: Cost skyrockets as ethical challenges persist

In regards to deforestation, more than a third of cocoa bought by companies this year comes from deforested or unknown sources. Companies report that 84% of farmers in their supply chain are not earning a living income, or their income is unknown. A living income is the minimum amount needed to have the capacity to cover basic necessities.

Meanwhile in 2024 the price of cocoa quadrupled, pushing the chocolate sector to breaking point.

In the UK for example, a 1kg bag of Cadbury Easter eggs (made by Mondelēz) has increased by £3 every year since 2023. Products are shrinking too. Mondelēz reduced its Milka bars from 100 grams to 90 grams while raising the price.

This year's scorecard shows little evidence that farmers are being lifted out of poverty and that their children still work in the supply chain with exposure to chemicals. Whilst the profits sit with CEO salaries and shareholder dividends, the risk for addressing these issues sits with the farmers.

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