How a Chocolate Scorecard is Exposing Supply Chain Gaps

The global chocolate industry, long plagued by opaque supply chains and exploitative labour practices, faces growing pressure to clean up its act.

Four of the sector’s biggest names - Tony’s Chocolonely, Ritter Sport, Nestlé and Mars Wrigley - step into the spotlight as they work to overhaul how they source their cocoa. Their actions are set against the findings of the sixth annual Chocolate Scorecard, a benchmark study on ethics and sustainability in chocolate, run by the Australian group Be Slavery Free.

This year’s scorecard probes deep into the heart of the supply chain, measuring companies on everything from child labour to farmer pay and deforestation.

At a time when chocolate prices hit record highs and consumer trust is fragile, the need for ethical traceability is more urgent than ever.

The Chocolate Scorecard is an examination of how companies earn their profits. It looks at whether cocoa is traceable back to the farm, if farmers are paid enough to cover basic needs, and if children are kept out of dangerous work. It also asks whether brands support agroforestry - where cocoa is grown among other trees - and if they reduce the use of harmful pesticides.

Fuzz Kitto, Co-Director at Be Slavery Free, makes the stakes clear. “Consumers today face record chocolate prices and shrinking products,” he says.

“The least they expect is slavery-free chocolate.”

Kitto warns against ‘cocoa washing’—when companies make ambitious ethical claims but fail to follow through. This kind of posturing without real change undermines the trust that scorecards like this aim to restore.

“The Chocolate Scorecard empowers consumers to make informed choices this Easter, urging chocolate companies to move beyond commitments to tangible actions,” he adds.

Leaders emerge

Dutch-based Tony’s Chocolonely sets the pace. The company receives the Good Egg award for its high levels of transparency and credible reporting.

Joke Aerts, Head of Credible Scaling at Tony’s Open Chain, argues that openness is key to reform: “For us, transparency is not just a value—it is essential for driving true transformation in the cocoa industry." 

Other recognitions go to Swiss retailer Coop and USA manufacturer Beyond Good, both awarded for their commitment to ethical sourcing at smaller and retail levels.

However, while some brands shine, others fall behind. Mondelēz International, which owns Cadbury and Toblerone, receives the Bad Egg award for poor transparency. This marks a stark fall from its 25th place showing in the fifth edition of the scorecard.

Tony’s approach uses standardised indicators, encouraging others to match or exceed its efforts. The idea is to foster competition on ethics, not just pricing or branding.

Mars Wrigley, another major player, gains the Gender Award for supporting women in cocoa-farming communities.

Harper McConnell, Global Vice President-Cocoa Sustainability at Mars Wrigley, points to the firm’s partnership with CARE. Their Women for Change programme has reached more than 100,000 members since 2024, with 75% of them women.

Harper says the initiative generated US$20m in savings and credit - and US$13m in loans. “We’re proud of efforts like our long-term collaboration with CARE,” she says.

Structural issues persist across the sector

Despite the positive steps taken by some, the industry remains riddled with problems.

Transparency on child labour has improved - with 82% of companies now sharing some data, up from 45% in 2023 - but this still hides deeper issues. Hazardous child labour continues across cocoa farms, and experts say known cases represent less than half of what actually occurs.

At the same time, 84% of farmers still fall short of earning a living income.

Meanwhile, cocoa prices soared in 2024, quadrupling amid global shortages. The result: products got smaller, prices rose, but farm-level profits remained dismal. In the UK alone, the cost of a 1kg Cadbury Easter egg jumped by £3 (US$4) in a year, while shareholders and executives saw rising returns.

Deforestation adds to the ethical mess. More than a third of cocoa comes from deforested or untraced land, undermining environmental pledges made by global brands. With the climate crisis and farmer poverty linked, sustainable agroforestry becomes essential, but it’s not yet widespread.

The chocolate sector finds itself in a moral bind. While consumer demand and public pressure mount, real change requires overhauling the global supply chain—not just tweaking it. Tools like the Chocolate Scorecard may not fix everything, but they expose the gaps and highlight who is trying to close them.

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