Cadbury’s Dairy Milk goes on sale today with a new selling point, the Fairtrade mark. As the chocolate bar enjoys the status of being Britain’s favourite, the company does not seem too worried about winning new fans, with company president Trevor Bond stating “If some people decide to switch to Dairy Milk after we change to Fairtrade, that would be great, but I don’t think that will happen on a large scale.”
Whether the company will see much of a difference in sales remains to be seen, but most customers tend to react positively when a company ups its ethical credentials, and there are enough of us out there who are more likely to buy a product when we see the Fairtrade mark. So, it is certainly a business decision, but not one made specifically for profit-making reasons. Perhaps there is something else going on here.
Given that Mars is beginning to move towards using sustainable sources of cocoa in its products, it would appear that a large part of the chocolate industry has realised that there is a strong business case for thinking long-term. Improving supply chain conditions and working towards sustainable agriculture are moves that will help secure business further down the line. And a future with chocolate is far tastier than a future without.
