> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://thechocolatelife.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Why the EPIC FAILURE of Cocoa Sustainability Initiatives? | #PSC 161 - URL: https://thechocolatelife.com/why-the-epic-failure-of-cocoa-sustainability-initiatives-psc-161/ - Published: 2025-11-10T18:23:47.000Z - Updated: 2025-11-11T17:50:46.000Z - Description: In episode 161 of #PodSaveChocolate, I will take a look at why cocoa sustainability initiatives have failed and why the failures were inevitable. - Author: Clay Gordon - Tags: PodSaveChocolate, Live Stream **When and Where to Watch** 🗓️ This stream begins at 11:00 ****MST** (10:00 PST, 12:00 CST, 1:00 pm EST), on Tuesday, Nov 11th, 2025. Links below to watch LIVE and to view the archived episode. [Why the EPIC FAILURE of Cocoa Sustainability Initiatives? | #PSC 161The EPIC FAILURE of Cocoa Sustainability #PodSaveChocolate episode 161OVERVIEWIn episode 161 of #PodSaveChocolate, I take a look at why cocoa sustainability…![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/icon/favicon_144x144-49.png)YouTube![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/thumbnail/maxresdefault-39.jpg)](https://youtube.com/live/tRl2AvahNwg?ref=thechocolatelife.com) Click on this (shareable) link to watch on YouTube. Please subscribe (free!) to the [@PodSaveChocolate YouTube channel](https://www.youtube.com/@podsavechocolate/featured?ref=thechocolatelife.com), like this video, comment, and ****share** this episode to help grow the #PSC community. This ****LINKEDIN** link is shareable. [![CTA Image](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/2025/05/LinkedInLogo.png)](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/claygordon%5Fpodsavechocolate-podsavechocolate-lavidacocoa-activity-7393713245259382784-r0aq?utm%5Fsource=share&utm%5Fmedium=member%5Fdesktop&rcm=ACoAAAABaLUB44l0lzyoZ9nf9Lg8nfstgzLqxbg) Watch and comment LIVE or view the archived episode on LinkedIn. Join my network on LinkedIn to receive notifications and to refer business to each other. [Watch this episode on LinkedIn ](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/claygordon%5Fpodsavechocolate-podsavechocolate-lavidacocoa-activity-7393713245259382784-r0aq?utm%5Fsource=share&utm%5Fmedium=member%5Fdesktop&rcm=ACoAAAABaLUB44l0lzyoZ9nf9Lg8nfstgzLqxbg) This ****FACEBOOK** link is shareable [![CTA Image](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/2025/05/FacebookLogo.png)](https://www.facebook.com/share/1CyNSocAyo/) Watch and comment LIVE or view the archived episode (for 30 days from the date of the livestream; thereafter on YouTube) on ****TheChocolateLife page** on Facebook. (Follow TheChocolateLife on Facebook to receive notifications and catch up on other content.) [Watch this episode on Facebook ](https://www.facebook.com/share/1CyNSocAyo/) --- ## **Overview - Episode 161** In Episode 160, I took a look at ARS 1000, a relatively new pan-African standards framework for sustainable cocoa. In that episode, I pointed out that piling more (expensive – or at least beyond the reach of individual smallholder farmers) bureaucracy on top of existing bureaucracy is *not* a path to sustainable cocoa. [ARS 1000: The Future of Cocoa? | #PSC 160Episode 160 of #PodSaveChocolate casts a critical look at ARS 1000, a continent-wide framework for sustainable cocoa.The formation of cooperatives in produci…![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/icon/favicon_144x144-48.png)YouTube![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/thumbnail/maxresdefault-38.jpg)](https://youtube.com/live/ke6ZW2A0YF0?ref=thechocolatelife.com) The [LinkedIn post](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/claygordon%5Fpodsavechocolate-lavidacocoa-thechocolatelife-activity-7391934360708505601-%5FEU8?ref=thechocolatelife.com) has some relevant comments. I made a similar argument in episode 140, when I pointed out that the call for more monitoring by the ICI does *not* (can not) address the root causes of farmer poverty that too often lead to illegal child labor (as if illegal child labor is what is standing in the way of sustainable cocoa). [ICI Says the Obvious: Disappoints Again | #PodSaveChocolate Ep 140Episode 140 takes a look at a recent report issued by the ICI - “Tackling child labour in cocoa: Results of ICI’s Member Reporting Exercise 2024.” What it says, and why this reporter is unconvinced.![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/icon/JR_Pods60x60FavIconCutoutButtons-322.png)The Chocolate LifeClay Gordon![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/thumbnail/Ep-140-ICI-Report---Featured1920x1080-4.jpg)](https://thechocolatelife.com/ici-says-the-obvious-disappoints-again-podsavechocolate-ep-140/) --- ## **Rethinking Sustainability** Let’s start by thinking about the definition of sustainability that is used in the ARS 1000 standard – Brundtland. > **“Meeting present needs without compromising future generations’ ability to meet their own needs.”** > > The Brundtland Report’s widely cited definition of sustainable development also emphasizes prioritizing essential **needs of the poor** and recognizing **limitations** imposed by technology and social organization. > > — See also [the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) page ](https://www.iisd.org/mission-and-goals/sustainable-development?ref=thechocolatelife.com)on this topic. Download “[Our Common Future](http://www.un-documents.net/our-common-future.pdf?ref=thechocolatelife.com)” aka the Brundtlandt Commission report. ### **The *Fundamental Flaw* In This Definition** For at least five years now, my definition of sustainable has had the following four elements: 1. **Environmental Sustainability** – this element is explicitly acknowledged in Brundtland. 2. **Economic Sustainability** – this element is vaguely implied in Brundtland. 3. **Social Sustainability** – this element is vaguely implied in Brundtland. 4. ***Market* Sustainability** – this element is nowhere to be seen in Brundtland, but, in my opinion, it is ***the*** key to the long-term success of the other three elements. > The first three elements can be seen as “problems” unique to producing countries. However, the fourth point recognizes that it is the consumers of cocoa (traders, processors, chocolate makers, candy/snack companies, confectioners, the public) who, ultimately, pay for everything. > > Homework for the reader: Sort the 17 UN SDG’s into one or more of the three elements: Environmental, Economic, or Social. 💡 ****TL;DR:** Any discussion of “sustainable” development that does not explicitly acknowledge, ***and** **set forth mechanisms to pay for**, sustainability that the market will pay for, is doomed to fail and can be viewed, implicitly, as **a form of modern economic imperialism*. ### **Case Study: EUDR** One fundamental flaw of the EUDR is that it sets forth a regulatory framework *without proposing a corresponding economic framework* that is acceptable to the markets. All of the costs and activities associated with EUDR compliance are taxes on the system that raise prices. > Furthermore, the EUDR regulations were imposed by a consortium of consuming countries on producing countries: they are a form of environmental, economic, and social imperialism. This makes sense(?) because regulators only know how to regulate, i.e., *bureaucrats only know how to bureaucrat:* They have one tool – regulations – so every problem can be solved with regulations. > But can they? **Really?** 💡 ****TL;DR:** No. Things are not that simple. --- ### Thinking about Boxes I think it’s fair to assume that we are all familiar with the phrase: > Think outside the box. Deepak Chopra suggested that it’s not enough to think outside the box: > You have to throw the box away. To my way of thinking, it’s not enough to throw the box away: > **You have to forget what boxes are** to be truly innovative. The idea underlying the need to forget what boxes are is the requirement to examine presuppositions when approaching problems, whether the problem is new or old. If regulators think that “the problem” is in “third world countries,” aka developing nations, aka the global south, then the solutions to those problems “belong” in those places, not in “first world countries,” aka developed nations, aka the global north. These phrases are **implicit** environmental, economic, *and* social imperialism. > It is **only** **by acknowledging *and accepting*** market impact and risks that the scales can begin to be balanced. Without the actors in “first world countries,” aka developed nations, aka the global north, acknowledging and accepting their culpability and responsibility, *no *real, meaningful, long-term* progress can be made*. --- ### **The Certification Industrial Complex** In this respect, certifications such as “Fair” Trade are thinly-disguised “socially acceptable” economic imperialism. Producers in “third world countries,” aka developing nations, aka the global south, pay for “the privilege” of being certified. However, the certifying bodies assume **zero** market risk – they *do not guarantee* that 100% of the product(s) certified will earn the premiums and benefits being paid for. Thus, they act as a tax on the system, raising prices. > But, it’s “Fair” trade. 💡 ****TL;DR:** But is it fair? Really? Who decided it was fair? (Hint: The people with market power are the ultimate deciders.) For more on this topic, refer to the following post, especially the ***Ethics as Market Category*** section: [The Changing Landscape of Cocoa Sourcing: Part 1For decades, large traders have dominated cocoa sourcing ecosystems. While that is still true, there are many new, alternative, sourcing options these days. But do all of them (any of them?) offer meaningful alternatives to the status quo? Part 1 of 4 parts.![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/icon/JR_Pods60x60FavIconCutoutButtons-323.png)The Chocolate LifeClay Gordon![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/thumbnail/timelab-sWOvgOOFk1g-unsplash-Featured1920x1080-4.jpg)](https://thechocolatelife.com/the-changing-landscape-of-cocoa-sourcing-part-1/) --- ### **The Cocoa Fox and the Cocoa Hen House** Nowhere can the inadequacy of relying on the regulatory approach be better seen than in the Harkin-Engel Protocol. After being signed in 2001, the issues the Protocol was created to address have not been resolved, more than twenty years later. > Putting the very entities that created the problems in charge of solving them is setting the stage for failure through self-dealing. This is, in large part, due to the intransigence of signatories and the reluctance(?) of politicians and judges, who have actively decided *not* to hold the signatories to their promises – despite the hard work of organizations like International Rights Advocates to hold companies to the letter *and* the spirit of their promises. [Harkin–Engel Protocol - Wikipedia![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/icon/wikipedia-9.png)Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.Contributors to Wikimedia projects![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/thumbnail/Chuao_003.JPG)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harkin%E2%80%93Engel%5FProtocol?ref=thechocolatelife.com) There is a huge amount of link rot when it comes to looking for documentary evidence in the US Congressional Record. [Download the HEP](https://www.cocoainitiative.org/sites/default/files/resources/Harkin%5FEngel%5FProtocol.pdf?ref=thechocolatelife.com) (PDF), signed by members of the CMA, Harkin, Engel, and other congressmen, and witnessed by a director of the ILO. [Cases — IRAadvocates![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/icon/favicon-57.ico)IRAadvocates![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/thumbnail/Screenshot-2025-06-13-at-10.42.23-E2-80-AFAM.png)](https://www.internationalrightsadvocates.org/cases?ref=thechocolatelife.com) Some of the cases IRA advocates for – in cocoa and more. --- ### **A Way Forward** This is going to be the closing topic for this episode, so you’re going to have to watch the episode for my thoughts. Those thoughts will also preface what I will propose in the Tuesday, November 18th episode. --- ### **Resources and Other Reporting** If mentioned during the livestream, they will be added here after the episode goes live. --- ### **Comments? Questions?** If you have questions or want to comment, you can do so during the episode or, if you are a ChocolateLife member, you can add them in the Comments below at any time. --- ### **Episode Hashtags and Socials** #sustainablecocoa #cocoa #cacao #cacau #chocolate #chocolat #specialtychocolate #craftchocolate #beantobar #PodSaveChoc #LaVidaCocoa #TheChocolateLife --- ### **Future Episodes** 🗓️ Friday November 14th November News and AMA 🗓️ Tuesday November 18th AI, Big Data, and the Future of Chocolate --- ### **#PodSaveChocolate and #TheChocolateLifeLIVE Archives** **To read an archived post** and find the links to watch archived episodes, click on one of the bookmark cards below. [Pod Save Chocolate Calendar and ArchiveNews, views, and conversations on topics in cocoa and chocolate streamed live to YouTube, LinkedIn, and Facebook. #PodSaveChocolate!![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/size/w256h256/2020/12/JR_Pods60x60FavIconCutoutButtons.png)The Chocolate LifeClay Gordon![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/2023/11/TagImageBanner-PodSaveChocTagFinal_1920x1080-5.jpg)](https://thechocolatelife.com/pod-save-chocolate-calendar-and-archive/) [#TheChocolateLifeLIVE ArchiveNews, views, and conversations on topics in cocoa and chocolate streamed live to YouTube, LinkedIn, and Facebook.![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/size/w256h256/2020/12/JR_Pods60x60FavIconCutoutButtons.png)The Chocolate LifeClay Gordon![](https://thechocolatelife.com/content/images/2023/03/solen-feyissa-WG7v_wYZW4Q-unsplash-CalendarFeatured1920x1080.jpg)](https://thechocolatelife.com/thechocolatelife-live-calendar/) [PodSaveChocolateHosted by Clay Gordon, the creator and moderator of TheChocolateLife.com, #PodSaveChocolate covers a wide variety of topics in the worlds of cocoa and chocolate. The video versions of this podcast are hosted and archived on YouTube, LinkedIn, and Facebook. Click on the PodSaveChocolate link in the top nav on TheChocolateLife for the links to the post accompanying each episode.![](https://pnc.st/static/img/256x256.png)Pinecast![](https://social.pinecast.net/preview_card/podcasts/covers/d3730dca-0711-4720-9ef3-3b18918c1f0d/TagImageBanner-PodSaveChocTagFinal_1920x1080.jpg?title=PodSaveChocolate)](https://pnc.st/s/podsavechocolate?ref=thechocolatelife.com) Audio-only podcasts --- ## Not a Member? Live The Chocolate Life – Live La Vida Cocoa! Sign up for Free to comment and receive members-only content. Subscribe Email sent! Check your inbox to complete your signup. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Premium subscriptions available. ---