This a guest blog post by Carol Plotkin, MS, RD, CDN

Like many of my colleagues, I have a mixed reaction to the partnership between my professional organization, the American Dietetic Association (ADA), and the Hershey Center for Health and Nutrition. Many dietitians are up in arms over this liaison believing that it gives validity to the numerous candy products that Hershey’s makes as being part of a healthy diet. Others view this association as a way to influence consumers to make healthier food choices by making the ADA, dietitians and their message more visible in the corporate food environment. Out of this liaison has come Moderation Nation, a program from the Hershey Center that paid up to $250 for dietitian services to the public and continues to offer the public expert dietitian resources. The ADAs own stance on this issue is that it doesn’t control the food products that its members recommend and corporate money is a small fraction of its budget. I wrestle with both sides of this issue, but a broader issue is being ignored. An issue that deals with the morality of how the Hershey Corporation does business: child slavery.

John Robbins eloquently discusses the current state of child slavery in cocoa farming and Hershey’s role in it by purchasing cheap cocoa from regions in West Africa where child slavery is practiced. Hershey contends that a large corporation cannot certify its products as fair trade or guarantee that all of its cocoa bean sources utilize fair trade practices. Despite this contention, many other large companies are making an effort to assure that they abide by fair trade practices as documented in “Time to Raise the Bar: The Real Corporate Social Responsibility Report from the Hershey Company.”

The ADA is known for championing children’s causes and advocates for improving child welfare through better nutrition. A recent ADA press release discusses the benefits of the Child Nutrition Act. ADA President Judith Rodriguez states, “Improving children’s nutrition and health is a priority of the American Dietetic Association and our members. We are actively involved in developing and implementing innovative solutions and creative nutrition interventions in all areas of children’s nutrition.” Apparently, ADA’s  position on child welfare only extends to children in the United States. In forming an alliance with the Hershey Corporation and remaining silent about the use of enforced child labor in cocoa bean production, is ADA complicit? I believe that fair trade is not an issue that is even on ADA’s radar. Other ADA corporate sponsors show various levels of concern for humanitarian and environmental issues. Of all their sponsors, Coca Cola and Hershey are viewed as offenders of fair trade practices.

As a member of the American Dietetic Association I have no say over what companies it chooses for corporate sponsorship. I can however raise my voice in displeasure and request that the ADA develop a policy concerning child slavery and fair trade and re-examine their corporate partnerships using this standard. Manufacturing practices using child labor would not be tolerated in the United States. They should not be tolerated anywhere.

If you are interested in supporting companies committed to fair trade, you can access more information about slave-free chocolate here.

Carol Plotkin, MS, RD, CDN is owner of On Nutrition, a nutrition consulting business.
www.rochesternutrition.com
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