Hershey Shareholders Allege Company Uses Cocoa Produced Through Unlawful Child Labor in Africa

[Omaha Steve]

Source: heraldonline.com

Public pension fund seeks court order to inspect Hershey's books; shareholders claim board has long known of company's dealings with suppliers utilizing illegal child labor in Ghana and the Ivory Coastand committing human trafficking violations; suit file

WILMINGTON, Del., A public pension fund has filed suit today against Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) to inspect the company's books and records, contending that the Pennsylvania-based confectioner uses cocoa produced as a result of unlawful child and forced labor in the West African countries of Ghana and the Ivory Coast.

The demand to inspect Hershey's corporate records was made by Louisiana Municipal Police Employees' Retirement System, and comes one day after Halloween, when candy sales and chocolate consumption are at their highest levels, particularly among children. The court filing marks the beginning of what could be a major shareholder challenge to the business practices of Hershey, the largest chocolate producer in North America. The company sells chocolate in some 70 countries worldwide with over $6.8 billion in net sales in the past fiscal year.

LAMPERS is represented by noted shareholder and corporate governance law firm Grant & Eisenhofer. The firm filed the complaint in Delaware's Chancery Court.

FULL story at link.


Read more: http://www.heraldonline.com/2012/11/01/4381673/hershey-shareholders-allege-company.html

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I have a public pension.

Marta and I have $ in two socially responsible funds, DOMINI SOCIAL BOND FUND (DSBFX) & DOMINI SOCIAL EQUITY FUND (DSEFX). No child labor etc. We learned about them from full page ads in In These times and Mother Jones.

[Kalidurga]

1. Impressive

A headline that actually shocked me. Good on them. I wish more shareholders would do this because it is the right thing to do.

[PatrynXX]

2. and because Hershey's is a good brand

so whats in the best interest of the shareholders. keep it a good brand. (as I'm eating Hershey's and Reeses products forever. think I'll just dump the pure Hershey's bars in the river. )

(without the paper) (this is a pun and joke because dogs and chocolate don't go together and they are apt to find it.

[glinda]

3. Most Hershey's products are Genetically Modified.

[hootinholler]

4. Wow, we should form a fund to do this kind of work

Invest in companies and hold them responsible.

[wtmusic]

5. Total bullshit for anyone who knows how the cocoa industry works.

And what a coincidence....all of these terrible things are happening right on Halloween!

Cocoa is a family-produced, labor intensive resource. There is little else to support people in the Ivory Coast, and families take great pride in the process. Kids who are old enough to walk help gather nuts and ferment them. The BBC found evidence that up to 15,000 slaves were used - out of millions of native Ivory Coasters - and now every politically-correct muni fund is up in arms doing their best to starve the country's fragile economy.

Just whose child labor laws are they breaking - those of the Ivory Coast? Of the United States? I hope fat Americans munching on their peanut butter cups are happy by making these people's lives harder than they already are, while enriching "Grant and Eisenhofer"...the ethnocentrism of this entire action makes me ill. Read the bottom of your link:

"Grant & Eisenhofer has been named one of the country's top plaintiffs' law firms by The National Law Journal for the past seven years. For more about Grant & Eisenhofer, visit www.gelaw.com."

[svpadgham]

6. Because it's "only" 15,000 slaves

that makes it ok. Personally, I think it's the slave tears that make the chocolate soooo delicious.

[wtmusic]

7. Well if it's a choice between that or your trendy activism starving hundreds of thousands

I'd have to say go with the slaves.

One sucks, another sucks a lot worse. Think hard.

[svpadgham]

8. Ask the slave which sucks more.

Nobody suggested letting the legit growers and harvesters starve. Think hard. I can post dumbass smug shit as well.

[wtmusic]

9. You've proven that, by suggesting I think slavery is OK

Here's one: ask a slave which is better, starving or being a slave.

You've never been hungry, and you have no idea what you're talking about.

[booley]

12. you seem confused about slavery

by definition slaves don't get that choice.

These arent' employees working to support themselves.. they are slaves working for their owner who hopefully will take care of his property.

[Omaha Steve]

10. Trendy?

Look through my posts over the years on the DU. Chocolate and child labor have been a small part of my posts since I became an active DUer.

[wtmusic]

17. I know that Steve.

IMO this one has a lot more to do with lawyers taking advantage of people's good intentions (and Halloween) to mischaracterize a situation for profit.

[Quantess]

13. "trendy activism"? Wow, so condescending.

Very dismissive, in a knee-jerk way.

[booley]

11. Why is slavery or starvation the only choices we get?

Seems that Hershey, being such a huge buyer, could find a way to get the chocolate and not use cocoa that uses slave or child labor.

Whether you meant to or not, whether you will admit it or not, your argument has the implicit connotation that if we don't accept things like slavery and other things we find morally reprehensible, then children will starve.

That's a rather fallacious argument. Indeed, it was used to defend child labor in this country a century ago.

[wtmusic]

16. That's pretty much what it comes down to.

I've been to Liberia, another cocoa exporter, and I've seen human beings lying on the ground like animals, covered in flies, a few hours away from death. Let me tell you, looking at a photograph doesn't come close. As abhorrent as slavery is, it's pretty damn far down the list when you and your family are dying.

Most cocoa is not harvested on large plantations, but smaller ones run by families and coops. Hershey's has no idea what's going on far off the beaten path, and that's where the abuses are happening. There's nil for government oversight, and anyone who goes looking to right social wrongs will be killed. So what's the answer, send in troops? Boycott chocolate? Both hurt the people who are at risk the most. My inside knowledge is limited, but what I know from talking to Liberians is that the vast majority of them look out for each other and work together.

In general they have 1/100 the choices we do here - you don't buy chocolate, and you make life very hard for them. In Liberia there was some tourism; in Ivory Coast there's little else. I think many Americans figure if we can just free these people from slavery, they can get other jobs. There aren't any other jobs.

[Sunlei]

14. In Hershey, Pa that company also hires foreign visa workers. Pa. could use those jobs.

The foreign guest workers even went on strike in 2011 because of pay and working conditions.

google link

http://www.google.com/search?q=guest+workers+strike+in+hershey%2C+Pa.&rls=com.microsoft:en-us&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1&rlz=

[roody]

15. Cruelty in every delicious bite.

Also genetic engineering in the corn, soy (lecithin), beet sugar, and oils used.