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Sustainable chocolate: Young people fight against child labor!
Around 65 students in Aichach found out about child labor in cocoa cultivation and fair chocolate consumption at a film screening.
Sustainable chocolate: Young people fight against child labor!
In the last few days, an exciting event in the Aichach-Friedberg district has caused a stir. Around 65 students learned about the dark sides of chocolate consumption and the problem of child labor in cocoa cultivation. The film screening was organized by the district's sustainability management, which actively advocates for fair trade, as lra-aic-fdb.de reports.
On October 28, 2025, young people flocked to the Cineplex Cinema Aichach to see the film “THE CHOCOLATE WAR,” which highlights the living and working conditions of children in cocoa farming. The film is aimed at an audience aged 15 and over and addresses the often precarious conditions under which many children work on cocoa plantations, as tagesschau.de explains.
A haunting look behind the scenes
The young people, who were accompanied by teachers from the Wittelsbacher Land vocational schools and the Aichach secondary school, were able to exchange ideas in an open conversation after the demonstration. Michaela Greppmair, the sustainability manager, and Petra von Thienen, spokeswoman for the Fair Trade Steering Group, moderated the discussion. The causes and consequences of child labor in cocoa cultivation as well as conscious consumption decisions were discussed.
Did you know that around half of the raw cocoa used in Germany comes from Ivory Coast? Many children work there under extreme conditions. Some of them were sold from Burkina Faso when they were just ten years old and are now doing hard work on plantations without earning a cent for their work. The parents of said children are often unable to meet their basic needs and are forced to give up their children, as can be seen from the reports on tagesschau.de.
A step in the right direction
At the start of the event, participating students were kindly given pretzels, apples and small fair trade chocolates to raise awareness of fair trade. Information materials from the INKOTA network complemented the film screening and discussion. The Aichach-Friedberg district continues to advocate for fair trade and is actively striving to qualify as a “Fair Trade” district.
Although major chocolate manufacturers such as Lindt and Ferrero recognize that child labor is a serious problem in the industry, improving production conditions remains a challenge. Lindt plans to source 100 percent of its cocoa from controlled sources by 2025, but child slavery and precarious work on plantations in Ivory Coast continue, as explosive data on tagesschau.de shows.
The committed campaigns like the one in the Aichach-Friedberg district are an important step in opening the eyes of young people in particular to this problem. Only through education and conscious consumer choices can we work together to ensure that future generations not only enjoy chocolate, but also advocate for the fair treatment of the people involved in its production.
Linking chocolate and social responsibility shows that there are ways to make a difference. So stay informed and support fair trade, because every purchase counts!