This is Serious! We're Going to Run Out Of Chocolate!

This is a bit difficult to comprehend but bare with me.  A report in the Independent today says that

"In 20 years chocolate will be like caviar. It will become so rare and so expensive that the average Joe just won't be able to afford it."

There are several reasons for this.  Firstly, demand for chocolate is growing rapidly with increased demand from new markets like China and India.  Ok, I get this bit.  Simple economics.  Where demand exceeds supply, prices rise.
Secondly, and this is where I lose the plot a little.

"Production will have decreased within 20 years to the point where we won't see any more cheap bars in vending machines – unless they are made with carob instead of chocolate," he says. "It's because the growers in West Africa only see 2p for every £1 bar. Even if you double that, it's no incentive for the next generation – which rightly expects decent working conditions. Those young people are heading for the cities. They won't stay around just so schoolchildren and commuters can continue to get their quick fix."

2p for every £1 bar? Seriously? How on earth are these people supposed to live on 2p out of every bar?


The same article says that it is the big chocolate companies that control the cocoa market.  How do they get away with this?


I have a novel idea.  Pay the farmers a fair price for their cocoa and they will produce more. Simple. 


Make it worth their while to tend their trees and look after their crops.  Teach them how to farm sustainably so that the environment is taken care of too.  The big chocolate companies have obviously made huge profits from these farmers for too long.  Time they invested some time and effort in those people on the ground. 


If you are a consumer, the one thing you can do right now is to look out for fairtrade chocolate next time you go shopping.