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Article

29 Sep 2015

Author:
Nicholas Iovino, Courthouse News Service (USA)

Chocolate Giants Face Slave Labor Lawsuits

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Three of the nation's largest chocolate companies - Mars, Nestlé and Hershey - get cocoa from suppliers that use child slave labor, customers claimed Monday in three federal class actions.  All three lawsuits…claim the candy giants "turn a blind eye" to human rights abuses by cocoa suppliers in West Africa while falsely portraying themselves as socially and ethically responsible…They accuse the companies of false advertising and violations of California business and consumer laws…All cite the defendants' corporate responsibility statements…A Nestle spokesman said the company stands by its position that child labor is unacceptable and goes against "everything Nestlé stands for."…More than 4,000 children work at forced labor to produce cocoa on Ivory Coast plantations, according to a Tulane University study…All plaintiffs seek class certification, declaratory judgment, restitution and an injunction against unfair and deceptive business practices…A spokesman for Hershey told Courthouse News the issues presented in the class action "are not new and reflect long-term challenges in cocoa-growing countries…”

Part of the following timelines

Customers in California file class action lawsuits alleging that Hershey, Mars & Nestlé use forced child labour in Côte d’Ivoire

Hershey lawsuit (re child labour in Côte d’Ivoire, filed in California)