Also, The money is increasingly being used to help producer organizations and farmers in strengthening their business. This means that they will be treated better and be able to get more food and money for their various needs. From that article “Cocoa for good” from Hershey it shows many examples of how cocoa farming is good for the Ivory Coast. For example, 31 percent of children have jobs in the Ivory Coast. This may sound like a bad thing but if you really think about this state you will find out that this is good. That is because if cocoa farming didn’t exist children would have to work in other harsher conditions. Such as chimney sweeping, coal mining, e.t.c. These are much worse conditions and, in extreme cases, cause death. Sure cocoa farming has its challenges such as deforestation and animals being hurt but companies are helping that. For example, companies are working towards putting laws in place to protect the environment, nourishing children, prospering communities, elevating youth, elimination of child labor and access to education. The question that was asked was why are they making children work if is so dangerous? I believe that the answer to this question is because children do not require much pay and farmers are able to get work done for much less pay. Also, children are tiny and can't fight back as much. Lastly, children are tiny and vulnerable so they can do work easily like climb the trees faster and easier than adults can. Lastly, I learned that chocolate took so much work and caused so many problems. After this unit I don't believe I will ever eat a chocolate bar the same again.

One reason why I believe that cocoa farming is bad for the Ivory coast is because of child labor on cocoa farms. As stated in Newsela on the topic of child labor on cocoa farms “About 70 percent of the world’s cocoa production comes from West Africa. Unlike many types of farming, cocoa growing is dominated by smaller farms. An estimated 1.8 million children work on cocoa farms in Ivory Coast and Ghana combined. (Newsela Article)”. The quote states that 70% of all cocoa comes from the Ivory Coast which is a lot of chocolate, I know that most of the people living in the Ivory coast depend on chocolate for money which is very hard to earn because of the intense poverty in the area. Since the demand for cocoa in the world is so high and because of the fact, the Ivory Coast is one of the main producers of cocoa they often need more people which is why they have children do the job. Although many children volunteer to go so they can provide for their families they give up the chance to a good education and put themselves in dangerous working conditions with long hours and little pay. Most of the time though, children are kidnapped and sold to cocoa farms without any choice where they also have to work in bad conditions with sharp knives and chainsaws. Additionally as stated by the Food Empowerment Project, “Child Labor and Slavery in the Chocolate Industry” from 2015, “...begin working at a young age to support their families…. Between the ages of 12 and 16, but reporters have found children as young as 5. In addition, 40% are girls, and some stay for a few months, while others end up working on the cocoa farms through adulthood...”. This shows that children who are very young are forced in child labor on cocoa farms this is a bad thing because they don’t get the chance to a good education which is very important and aren’t paid well at all. In the same article, it was also said that children have to use chainsaws to clear trees in the rainforest and use a sharp knife called a matchet. Matches are very dangerous and are able to cut through a child’s skin, many children working with these matches are left with horrible scars. Using such things is very dangerous especially when children use them when forced in working on cocoa farms. To conclude one reason why cocoa farming is bad for the Ivory Coast is because of child labor on cocoa farms. 

Another reason why cocoa farming is bad for the Ivory Coast is that cocoa farming causes deforestation of rainforests. While cocoa farming uses child labor it also causes the deforestation of the rainforest of the Ivory Coast not only are the trees affected but also organisms living in these rainforests. Deforestation causes these organisms to become endangered or even worse, go totally extinct and never seen again forever. In the article “Is Chocolate Driving Monkeys Into Extinction?” by John R. Platt it was stated, “Ten years ago the forests of the Ivory Coast were full of the hoots and howls of more than a dozen primate species. No more. Today the West African nation is much quieter. The forests are mostly gone and the monkeys that they once held aren’t far behind. Several species have become critically endangered. One may now be extinct..”. This shows that many of the monkeys in the rain forests of the Ivory Coast which is found in the West African nation have become endangered which is very bad. If the deforestation of these rainforests continues not only might these monkey species become extinct but all of the rainforests might be destroyed as well as many of the other organisms living in them. Furthermore many ‘protected areas’ haven’t been protected at all and were taken over by cocoa farms. In the article “Is Chocolate Driving Monkeys Into Extinction?” by John R. Platt it was said, “..more than 74 percent of the supposedly protected forests the researchers surveyed had been taken over by cocoa farms. All of this deforestation, combined with the hunting that accompanies it, has had a devastating impact on the Ivory Coast’s primates. Five of the surveyed protected areas were found to have lost half of their primate species. Another 13, the researchers found, were completely devoid of primates...”. This provides that many protected areas have been taken over by illegal cocoa farms and that the deforestation they cause has impacted the monkeys and the Ivory Coast dramatically. The deforestation and loss of many primates/monkeys in the Ivory Coast is definitely a negative of cocoa farming.

To conclude cocoa is bad for the Ivory Coast, it's people, and the rainforests it contains. Even though cocoa is the main ingredient of one of the most loved sweets, chocolate the price for it is too high to pay especially for the main producer, the Ivory Coast.

The child labor happening on cocoa farms is very similar to the child labor happening currently in mines where children are forced to find the Cobalt we use as batteries in our phones. Congo, located in Africa is where the greatest amount of child labor is used when looking for Cobalt. Congo is where more than 60% of the world’s cobalt is found but it is also one of the poorest countries in the world, cobalt is a silver, grey metal but more than just that it is also what the batteries in our phones are made of. This is very similar to the Ivory coast which also is a main producer but of another good, cocoa beans. Both the Ivory Coast and Congo are very poor which is why child labor is occurring. Many children in Congo just like in the Ivory coast need to support their families so they decide to get a job by mining for cobalt. Mining for cobalt is very dangerous as stated in the article “The Real Cost of Batteries” by Junior Scholastic, “...Day after day, he’d descend hundreds of feet underground without any protective gear. Using a small chisel, he’d spend up to 24 hours at a time searching for cobalt, an essential component of the rechargeable batteries that power our smartphones, laptops, and other electronic devices. Collecting cobalt is backbreaking—and life-threatening—work. At any moment, the mine’s tunnels could have caved in, leaving Paul buried in an avalanche of rocks and dirt. Cobalt miners are also exposed to toxic materials that can cause cancer, lung disease, and other serious health problems.”. This shows that mining for cobalt is very dangerous not only are children forced many feet underground but they are given no safety equipment and the environment is dangerous as well as said above the the mines tunnels could have caved inwards or fallen straight from above. These aren’t the only things that these kids are risking they are also being exposed to dangerous chemicals which could cause a serious disease for example cancer. Since many people are soo poor they might not have the money for a doctor to help kids who have been exposed to these chemicals and gotten seriously ill. Furthermore, in the same article “The Real Cost of Batteries” it was also said, “Last fall, an investigation by American journalist highlighted the hazardous conditions of the cobalt industry in the DRC, where 60 percent of the world’s cobalt is mined. The report detailed a number of human rights abuses, including a lack of worker protections and the use of child laborers like Paul...Last fall, an investigation by American journalists highlighted the hazardous conditions of the cobalt industry in the DRC, where 60 percent of the world’s cobalt is mined. The report detailed a number of human rights abuses, including a lack of worker protections and the use of child laborers like Paul.”. This shows that child labor is very common in Congo and that these children work in very dangerous conditions it is also stated that the companies and people forcing these children to work in such places are breaking many human rights. Additionally, the quote also shows more examples of the dangers of the work that these children have to do. For example accidents such as fires and tunnel collapses seem to be occurring very often and working to support their families’ kids such as Paul in child labor often are put in such near-death experiences. Just like chocolate, when we use our phones and other technology we don’t realize the lives lost behind the making of it. 

Child labor on cocoa farms in the Ivory Coast is very similar to the child labor in cobalt mines in Congo. In both, the Ivory Coast and Congo children are forced or choose to go into dangerous jobs to support their families’ and both the Ivory Coast and Congo have a big supply of a certain good; the Ivory Coast has cocoa beans and Congo has a big supply of cobalt which is used in phone batteries. The entire situation is very similar to the one in the Ivory Coast children in child labor on both cocoa farms and in mines have to work in very dangerous conditions with little pay. In Congo children have to work very deep underground with no safety equipment were they are exposed to dangerous chemicals which can cause cancer on the other hand though children on cocoa farms have to use very sharp and dangerous knives and chainsaws which could also cause death. In both child labor situations, the goods they produce are often used by major brands, for example, the Ivory Coast has cocoa beans, some of which go to Hershey's. In Congo the cobalt is used for phone batteries, Apple is a phone company and some of the batteries go to them. In both the Ivory Coast and Congo though child labor is still, sadly, happening. Many children are still forced to work on cocoa farms and cobalt mines, it is important to know about this and it is important for people and organizations to educate the public about child labor everywhere not only the Ivory Coast and Congo.

Kids are transported all over, first little  boys and girls are kidnapped, which is cruel, the companies say they are 10-15, but they are younger.

Most companies lie about trafficking, They say they don’t do it at all.

They are in danger and were told they would get paid, which there familys need money so they want to do it because they think it will support their family.

Men on bikes surround them and take them to the bus.

They will say they will pay them but they technically are getting paid.