Today marks the last day of our two week adventure in the Netherlands, and thankfully we were given a free morning to sleep in. At 2pm we met in the basement of the hotel for a presentation from Joke, an employee of Tony Chocolonely. She was very well spoken, and the presentation was extremely insightful. As a business major, this particular presentation resided with me the most, as she talked specifically about the supply chain of her company.
She covered tons of material, and so I can’t write about all of it, but the part I found most interesting is that Tony Chocolonely strives to create a safe and respected supply chain, rather than a purely efficient one. Tony Chocolonely sells chocolate bars, which means they are in the cocoa industry. Unfortunately, the cocoa industry is commonly known for unsafe use of child labor, as well as deforestation. In the cocoa industry, 1.56 million children work illegally, and 10,000 hectares of land are deforested each year. The industry remains one of the least ethical in the world in those statistics. And while these practices might be efficient over a short period of time, they are dangerous and far from sustainable. So instead of creating the perfect supply chain, Tony Choclonely is seeking to inspire change and create a sustainable one. As a major player in the cocoa market, they have the power to set new standards. In the past, much of the cocoa that entered Europe was untraceable, which is a telling sign that it is the product of child labor, deforestation, or both. However, starting next year all companies importing cocoa into Europe will have to prove that it is deforestation free. From a pure business perspective, this might slow down the supply chain temporarily, but it will make it much more sustainable in the long run.
After the presentation we took the tram downtown to visit the Tony Chocolonely superstore. The store was fairly small, but had a vast selection of chocolates. It also had a window looking into a production facility, where you could see a physical aspect of the supply chain. We spent a little while at the store before heading to dinner at an Indonesian restaurant. At the conclusion of dinner we said our goodbyes to Dasha, and listened to some final remarks from Frank and Dr. Bursic. It’s surreal that this trip is already over. There have been great times, not so great times, and just about everything in between. I am extremely grateful for the opportunities we were given, and very thankful for everyone else involved. I grew to absolutely love the group of kids on the trip, as well as Frank and Dr. Bursic. It has been an incredible experience, and I will never forget it.