There’s a very bitter story to the sweet story of chocolate.

Ynzo Van Santen

We all love chocolate, but what do we actually know about where our chocolate comes from and how it’s made?

The fact is that 70% of the world’s chocolate is grown in West Africa, in an industry that currently employs more than 2 million child laborers. How did chocolate and child labor become so intertwined and what would a more ethical chocolate industry look like? We sat down with the chief chocolate evangelist from Tony’s Chocolonely, Ynzo Van Zanten, to find out.

Episode Show Notes:

1. Learn more about Tony’s Chocolonely on their website.
2. You can join the fight for a more ethical chocolate industry by signing this petition.
3. To better understand the dark side of the chocolate industry, Ynzo recommended watching the chocolate episode of the Netflix Series “Rotten.” Check out the trailer for season 2 here.
4. As a reference, 60% of the world’s chocolate supply comes from Ghana and the Ivory Coast, much of which is currently grown using child labor.
5. Read their most recent Annual Report to learn about the impact on the chocolate industry.
6. Ynzo’s go-to karaoke song is “Islands in the Stream” by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers.

If you enjoyed learning more about Tony’s Chocolonely and the economics of chocolate, you’ll enjoy our discussion about the economics of farming with Noelle Fogg Elibol of Kitchen Table Advisors.