By Adam Hollingworth
Cadbury has announced that its Dairy Milk chocolate is going to become Fairtrade chocolate - a move which should ensure cocoa farmers get fair prices.
The move comes less than 10 days after Cadbury's embarrassing back down over the use of palm oil in its chocolate.
Cadbury NZ Managing Director Matthew Oldham sees the move as a positive move by the company.
“We see it as something that consumers want. They want to understand the sustainability of the sourcing of their products, and this is just an investment in the brand for us for the future,” Mr Oldham syas.
However, TBWA Advertising CEO, David Walden, sees a desperately cynical manoeuvre by a company that lost customers in foisting palm oil onto an unwilling public.
“This is really a band aid on a neck wound, Cadbury made a big mistake here and they needed to put it right, and this is the second step in putting it right,” Mr Walden says.
Mr Oldham says that is not the case.
"Certainly not. This is part of a long term strategy. It's taken us years to gain the Fairtrade certification for New Zealand, and I think that it's a positive thing that our consumers really want to see,” he says.
Mr Oldham argues the move will triple the amount of Fairtrade product being sold here,
Trade Aid specialises in Fairtrade products, including its own chocolate brand. Trade Aid General Manager Geoff White warns child labour is widespread in all the cocoa growing countries.
“While it's good that they've gone fair trade with that one line, we would like as a minimum to ensure that the other lines are slave free,” Mr White says.
Cadbury replied that it does not use slaves, and switched sources from Ivory Coast where enforced labour is rife, to Ghana 100 years ago.
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