M&M/Mars says: "Since allegations surfaced that abusive labor practices were occurring on cocoa farms, our response has been swift and unwavering"

The Truth: The industry initially denied responsibility and agreed to take action only after threatened with legislation requiring chocolate to be certified as "slavery-free."

M&M/Mars says: "Our actions are framed by a September 2001 Protocol agreement...To quote Kevin Bales 'This protocol is a breakthrough...the partnership is unique and will serve as a model...'"

The Truth: The Protocol is vastly insufficient in several ways. It fails to guarantee stable and sufficient cocoa prices and involves "voluntary standards," so it doesn't tackle the cause of abusive child labor: poverty. The protocol has been criticized by credible groups such as the International Labor Rights Fund, which has said the Protocol "is inadequate alone to address the complex problem of child labor in the cocoa sector effectively. [It] has resulted in a privatized mechanism without binding and enforceable rights. When it comes to child labor, we must demand more."

M&M/Mars says: "A survey of more than 3,000 farms in West Africa... tells us that more than 99% of farmers in the Ivory Coast do not employ children as full-time workers."

The Truth: Even one child slave or one child having to work instead of attending school is unacceptable. However, Mars doesn't admit the extent or nature of problems beyond abusive child labor. Indeed, the IITA found that 12,500 child cocoa workers had no relatives in the area - a sign of trafficking, that 284,000 children perform hazardous tasks and that 66% of Ivory Coast child cocoa workers don't attend school.

Mars says: "some accomplishments include [establishing] farmer field schools...pilot programs [seeking] to raise standard of living...and [promoting] internationally accepted labor practices." "Trained Cameroon farmer organizations... farmers...earned 15 percent more for their cocoa crop." "The steps we are currently taking ... are part of a broader effort initiated ... in 1998 to improve the well-being of millions of responsible small farmers."

The Truth: By emphasizing public education on labor standards, the industry is placing the blame on farmers instead of admitting its own guilt in keeping prices low. The "pilot programs" and "broader efforts" essentially serve to preserve the environment for the industry's self-interest, or are charity efforts of limited reach and without guaranteed results. The fact that such programs were established well before abusive child labor was discovered is a clear sign of their ineffectiveness. They have failed because they operate within a system rooted in injustice. Fair Trade involves programs with similar goals, and has demonstrated success because such programs operate within a comprehensive system. The industry is trying to reinvent the wheel, but leaving out a lot of spokes!

Industry Public Relations Statement: "The effort to develop a certification program in cocoa is virtually unprecedented, especially as it relates to the production of an agricultural commodity."

The Truth: This statement is absolutely untrue. The Fair Trade system, which involves independent monitoring and certification from the farm to the store, has a long history and involves over 800,000 producers in 48 countries.

M&M/Mars says: "We believe that adopting a Fair Trade approach would actually harm a majority of [cocoa producing] families by excluding them from the worldwide cocoa market and disrupting their incomes."

The Truth: This characterization of the Fair Trade system is completely inaccurate. Fair Trade is the BEST way for farmers to participate directly in the international market, and the ONLY guarantee of a stable and sufficient income. Corporate control of the market, leading to insufficient prices, is what is harming farmers.

M&M/Mars says: "Fair trade is an approach that works best with farms that have access to infrastructure such as communications and warehousing facilities. Currently the majority of farmers in West Africa do not have access to [necessary] infrastructure."

The Truth: Fair Trade is easy for farmers to get involved in, and already involves more than 42,000 farmers from 9 different countries in West Africa and Latin America. Over 90% of cocoa producers are small-scale farmers that could join the Fair Trade system by forming cooperatives. Cooperative formation is simple and free, and makes infrastructure development easier because cooperatives pool individual resources to achieve the necessary steps. The biggest obstacle to Fair Trade lies in the failure of companies to support this system. Even Fair Trade producers sell only a fraction of their crop at Fair Trade prices because companies just don't want to pay them what their crop is worth.

Concluding statement from Global Exchange: M&M/Mars has the responsibility and the resources to pay all producers a stable and sufficient price, and thus ensure an end to abusive child labor on cocoa farms. They should be a leader in supporting Fair Trade and helping more farmers come into the Fair Trade system. Specifically, they should start buying at least 5% of their cocoa from Fair Trade cooperatives now, pay a fair trade price to all those who are not in cooperatives, and help these farmers develop the infrastructure they need to organize themselves into Fair Trade co-ops. This is the most comprehensive and beneficial option and consumers must demand nothing less.