Conscious Choice Seattle: Dark Side of Chocolate: Child-Slave Trafficking

February 2004 | Living Green

Dark Side of Chocolate: Child-Slave Trafficking

By Co-op America

Dear Co-op America,
I’ve heard child slavery is a problem in the chocolate industry. Is this true? How can I buy chocolate that isn’t tied to child labor?
—Gina E., Billings, MT

You’re right to be concerned. Sadly, child slavery is indeed prevalent in the chocolate industry. According to the U.S. State Department, 70 percent of the world’s chocolate comes from the Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Cameroon, where child slave trafficking has been well-documented.

However, you can find chocolate that is free from child labor. Just look for chocolate displaying the Fair Trade Certified™ label.

This label appears on coffee, tea, and chocolate independently certified as meeting the conditions of “fair trade” by TransFair USA. This nonprofit certification agency ensures that farmers receive a fair price for their goods; work in healthy and environmentally sustainable conditions; and are guaranteed financial and educational support to improve their communities and businesses. TransFair also ensures that the farms it certifies have no child slaves.

You can buy Fair Trade Certified™ chocolate candy, cocoa mix, and baking chocolate from companies like Cocoa Camino (613/235-6122, www cocoacamino com) or Dagoba Organic Chocolate (541/664-9030, www dagobachocolate com). SERRV International (800/422-5915, www.serrv.org) even has a Divine™ chocolate fundraising program for schools and nonprofits.

Dear Co-op America
How can I responsibly dispose of those annoying promotional CD-ROMs sent through the mail?
—Clueless Recycler, Washington, DC

For a small fee, you can send those promo CDs to Green Disk. This Redmond-based company recycles promo disks, as well as CDs, tapes, videocassettes, computer disks and related packaging (800/305-DISK, www.greendisk.com). We also recommend returning the CDs to their maker, asking them to remove your name from their mailing list.

Dear Co-op America,
I recently read that hair dyes can cause cancer. Are there any safe options?
—Not a Silver Fox, Miami, FL

If you regularly color your hair with permanent dyes, you are at greater risk for bladder cancer, according to a 2001 study by the University of Southern California (USC). The study found that women who use permanent hair dyes at least once a month for one year or longer have twice the risk of bladder cancer as non-users.

Monthly or more frequent dyers and those who have dyed their hair for 15 years or more experience three times the risk. Hairdressers who have worked with hair dyes for 10 years or more have five times the risk.

The problem, say USC researchers, are a family of chemicals called arylamines, principal ingredients in many synthetic hair dyes that have previously been found to cause cancer in lab animals.

Dr. Mimi Yu, a researcher on the USC study, notes that findings from a single study “do not represent definitive cause and effect.” Other studies will have to back up the USC findings before hair dyes with arylamines are declared carcinogenic. However, the researchers do encourage caution, especially since European scientists confirmed the study last year.

Here’s how to make dying less toxic:

Minimize use of permanent hair dyes. If you do use them, try highlighting which involves minimum contact with your scalp. And don’t stray too far from your natural color—doing so means you’ll have to dye more often to maintain your look.

Use the lightest permanent shade possible. Darker dyes contain a higher concentration of arylamines than lighter ones.

Use demi-permanent, semi-permanent and temporary hair dyes. The USC study found no links between these dyes and cancer.

Use 100 percent natural henna, available at pharmacies and natural food stores.

Use natural and herbal color rinses. Aubrey Organics’ Color Me Natural line (800/282-7394, www aubreyorganics com includes five permanent shades—ranging from light brown to mahogany—made of 100 percent natural and plant-based ingredients. Ecocolors (877/852-4515, www ecocolors net comes in 13 shades and is made with natural ingredients, though it does contain trace amounts of p-phenylinediamine (PPD), an arylamine. And Herbatint (800/681-7099, www herb it is a permanent vegetable dye available in 30 shades. It also contains low concentrations of PPD.

If you’d rather have a professional color your hair, bring your own less-toxic products to the salon. Or, look for a salon that uses Aveda dyes. Aveda’s demi-permanent dyes are 99 percent plant-based, and its permanent dyes are 97 percent derived from plants.

Living Green is brought to you by Co-op America, a national nonprofit that provides green living, purchasing, and investing tips and resources. To join Co-op America and get a free copy of the National Green Pages™ directory of green businesses, contact 800/58-GREEN, www.coopamerica.org.

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