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There's an article about cocoa farming—something nearer and dearer to our hearts the closer it gets to February 14th -- in The Economist this week, In January, Cadbury Schweppes, the company that brought you the Cadbury crème egg and the Cadbury Dairy Milk bar, was feeling the heat. Prices for cocoa and other raw materials were high, anti-obesity campaigns weren’t making for good PR. Cocoa farmers in Ghana weren’t producing as much as the company needed, and the children these farming families weren’t seeing the benefit of growing cocoa for another generation.

So, on January 28, an understandably frantic Cadbury announced that it was starting a “Cadbury Cocoa Partnership.” Over the next decade the company will spend $87 million to invest in seeds, teach their cocoa farmers techniques on how to collaborate, and help them diversify their farmland with red peppers, mangoes, and coconuts that grow well with cocoa trees. To free up time for women and children, they’re building water wells on farms. And, in the future, there’s talk of funding schools and libraries.

This may sound altruistic—but the bottom line is never far from Cadbury’s mind. As The Economist reported, “without cocoa supplies from Ghana, Cadbury would be in big trouble.” Ghana provides “all the cocoa for Cadbury’s British operations and 70% of its world wide supply.” Of course, Cadbury isn’t the only company reaching out. America’s chocolate giant, Mars, is also pledging to help develop chocolate farming in West Africa and is partnering with development agencies to do so.

There is another way for companies to help farmers in developing countries. Fairtrade is an international movement that works to change international trade and provide above-market payments to farmers and protect them from drastic changes in the market. (Cadbury and Starbucks buy some of their commodities). In theory, Cadbury and Mars could just buy chocolate from them, but then they wouldn’t get so involved with the production—which is what they’re really worried about, and I agree, chocolate production must go on.

So, it’s good news that Cadbury, Mars, and Fairtrade are working to keep cocoa growers in business. In the meantime, need Valentine’s Day Chocolates? Try these links: the luxurious Godiva, Michigan’s local Morley Candy, or find it all at www.chocolate.com.