Coacoa Equity Issue

I wanted to fill you in on something I've been thinking and reading about that applies directly to our conversations in small group and Sunday school.

We all know about the necessity for Fair Trade coffee and have even committed (at some level) to serving it at church functions. However, I've recently become aware of (through the Simply in Season website - a cookbook connected with the MCC) the child slavery used to produce about 40% of the world's cocoa. Young boys in West Africa are often sold or tricked into slavery and then are forced to harvest the cocoa beans which eventually ends up in the inexpensive chocolate that you and I enjoy. This is a clear case of the wealthy enjoying the "good life" at the great expense of the poor and helpless of the world.

If you'd like to read more about this please go to this site. This and other websites state that about 40% of our non-fair trade chocolate has "slave chocolate" in it. Apparently gaining some extra pounds in no longer our only guilt in eating those yummy chocolates. Of course there is something we can do and this is where I would like a response from you.

The "Equal Exchange" brand of fair trade coffee and tea also sells chocolate bars, hot cocoa and baking chocolate. While perusing through their website I discovered that they have a wholesale program through which churches and fellowships can purchase their goods in larger quantities for significantly less cost as well as a decrease in shipping (even possibly no shipping). Actually, buying Equal Exchange coffee this way is even cheaper than I can buy the same brand at Acme. I had a thought that perhaps we could start a "co-op" of sorts through the church. This way we could keep a regular supply of fair trade coffee at the church as well as take orders for those who would want to make purchases of coffee, tea, and/or chocolate for their home.

I spoke with a woman from the Equal Exchange office yesterday and she said that it takes about two weeks for an order to arrive. I'm thinking that an order could be made every couple of months to allow us to order a greater quantity and therefore, keep our costs lower. Please take a look at the church wholesale page. You'll notice that the chocolate is significantly more expensive than what you can buy it for at the drug store but that's because the cocoa in it is guaranteed to have been produced by those who were actually adult workers rather than CHILD SLAVES!! It seems to me like a fair price to pay for my luxury item so that I can be assured that child slavery did not go into producing it for me. I guess it will teach me to eat less and savor more.

By the way, I read that they will only take chocolate orders until April as it is out of season April - October. Wow, I never realized that chocolate had a season (but maybe this has more to do with the temperature while shipping ???)

I talked to Ginny about bringing this idea to the deacons at their March meeting and then opening it up to the church as a whole. However, she didn't seem to think there would be anything wrong with offering a "test run" of sorts through our Canton small group. After taking a look at the Equal Exchange website could you let me know if you would be interested at all? I would take care of taking orders and paying for it.... of course you would reimburse me for your order. If you wouldn't want an entire case of something, I would try to coordinate with others to share a case. Anyway, perhaps those are details to work out later. Just let me know what you think.

from Pamm's email