Valentine’s Day Chocolates Hurt the Planet
How much do you know about those Valentine’s Day chocolates people love to cram in their faces today? Did you know they have a pretty negative effect on the economies where they’re grown and on the tropical environments where they’re grown?
Let’s start with some basic facts. America eats the most chocolate out of any country, more than 3 billion pounds a year. The farmers that grow the cacao only get about 5% of the profits related to the chocolate industry, and the cacao farms are to blame for an estimated 14% of deforestation in West African rainforests, as well as harming the rain forests in South America.
The “chocolate tree” is actually called a cacao tree. The giant seeds of this tree are what cocoa comes from.
These trees grow best in their natural habitat, in a shady rainforest filled with life, however that is not where they’re being grown. Rather than incorporate this profitable tree into a stable environment, the farmers are focusing on how much forest they can remove in order to grow the cacao trees. In short, this industry is raping the land and keeping it’s productivity very low due to the popular manner of growing cacao trees (on a plantation).
Source of all information presented.
This is not to say that everyone should boycott Valentine’s chocolates, but maybe just to think for a second before you enjoy them.
Did you have any clue about how chocolate affects the environment?
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Activism, Science 
14 February 2008, 05:12
Activism, Blog 365, chocolate, Environmental Issues, environmentalism, LiveScience, Month of Lurve, Offbeat, Science, Valentine's DayYou can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
It’s quite sad that some things us Americans take for granted are made in harsh conditions and hurts the environment. However, the fact that we purchase the chocolate, helps their economies cause we’re actually buying something from them. Otherwise, they’d not make any money, right?
Actually, I do know a little bit about it… My friend left a comment in one of my older “chocolate” posts… He wrote, “Chocolate brings much suffering to this world. Child slavery in the Ivory Coast is a major source of the world’s cacao.”
It’s true, sadly.
Wow, I didn’t know that! But on V-Day, I give the chocolate to someone else. I just can’t openly enjoy it on the 14th of February.
By the way, have you joined Pownce yet? I know what a Twitter addict Mari is. Pownce is just like Twitter…except Mari isn’t on it.
Have fun on your blog hiatus. (I know I did - it was a complete hiatus - e-mail, bloghopping, commenting, etc.). Hope you come back refreshed and inspired.
Bye for now.
Would it make me an evil person to say that, yes I did know how the trees are farmed and that the industry wipes out thousands upon thousands of acres of forestry a year, but that I still enjoy nibbling on chocolate?
I do mind the intake of chocolate now, but yeah. I knew and I still like to eat it. *blushes*
I shall remember this the next time I feel like eating chocolate
Maybe thinking about all the negative effects of the chocolate industry will keep me motivated on my attempt to stop eating sweets!
Eh…were always american #1 everything…chocolate eater, were the number one fat country, were number one food waster lol, and etc.
We live in such a luxurious country.
…and I admit…I’m addicted to chocolates..><””’