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"It doesn’t make sense for chocolate bars to be divided into equal-sized chunks when there is so much inequality in the chocolate industry! The unequally-sized chunks of our 6.35 oz bars are a palatable way of reminding Choco Fans and Serious Friends that the profits in the chocolate industry are unequally divided.

And in case you haven’t noticed, the bottom of our bars depicts the West African coastline. The chunks just above it represent the Gulf of Guinea. From left to right, you have Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Togo and Benin (terribly politically incorrect, we know, but we had to combine them to create enough space for a hazelnut), Nigeria and part of Cameroon."

From https://us.tonyschocolonely.com/pages/faqs

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[-] Ledivin@lemmy.world 178 points 2 weeks ago

I love it, but I feel obligated to say

"It doesn’t make sense for chocolate bars to be divided into equal-sized chunks when there is so much inequality in the chocolate industry!

No, it makes sense. I understand, but it makes a lot more sense

[-] stebo02@lemmy.dbzer0.com 27 points 2 weeks ago

Ok but this is a good way to raise awareness about the issue. Many people will pick these bars in the store without knowing much about the brand. Then when they eat it, they will probably wonder why it's divided like that and the explanation is right there on the inside of the wrapper.

[-] RogueBanana@lemmy.zip 17 points 2 weeks ago

And then never buy them again because they are difficult to break evenly. Great idea but poor execution imo.

[-] smeg@feddit.uk 20 points 2 weeks ago

Do you buy chocolate based on convenience over taste?

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[-] Blackout@fedia.io 112 points 2 weeks ago

I do like these bars but breaking it into pieces without a mess is difficult. I've had to resort to putting the entire thing in my mouth and waiting for it to melt down my throat.

[-] HerrBeter@lemmy.world 31 points 2 weeks ago

You break it while the packaging is intact

[-] kautau@lemmy.world 23 points 2 weeks ago

The geopolitical meta is strong here

[-] Iheartcheese@lemmy.world 13 points 2 weeks ago
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[-] LengAwaits@lemmy.world 105 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Too bad about all the lead in them. They're not as bad as some brands, though.

[-] SmoothOperator@lemmy.world 52 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

An ounce of their Dark Chocolate has 134% of the California MADL dose of 0.5 micrograms of lead, for those wondering about details.

[-] thisNotMyName@lemmy.world 22 points 2 weeks ago

An ounce is about 29 grams in non-freedom units, for those wondering

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[-] whocares314@lemmy.world 11 points 2 weeks ago

micrograms, which is 1/1000 of a milligram. No amount of lead is considered safe, but you would need to eat allllottttttt of this chocolate before it would get to a level that, for example, a doctor would be concerned about. Ars Technica has a good write up about the CR report

Not that I’m trying to shill for Big Chocolate. When I saw the report, I definitely made a conscious effort to cut back to once a month or less.

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[-] Appoxo@lemmy.dbzer0.com 10 points 2 weeks ago

Am I blind or can I not find the claim about 134% on the linked page?
Searched for "Tony" there.

[-] wethan2@sh.itjust.works 11 points 2 weeks ago

It's the first one in the high in lead section

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[-] FatTony@lemmy.world 10 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Well, I'm here now. What do you want?

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[-] stebo02@lemmy.dbzer0.com 16 points 2 weeks ago

if I die by eating dark chocolate, at least I'll die happy

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[-] tiefling 14 points 2 weeks ago

Otoh, it makes them sweeter

[-] DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social 12 points 2 weeks ago

If it's good enough to collapse the Roman Empire, it's good enough to collapse the American Empire!

[-] univers3man@lemmy.world 14 points 2 weeks ago
[-] LengAwaits@lemmy.world 15 points 2 weeks ago

I know, right? It really sucks. They're honestly one of the tastier bars I'd had. I've taken a bit of a step back from chocolate in general, these days. I probably got enough lead exposure as a kid... no need to add any more than is absolutely unavoidable.

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[-] Jessica@discuss.tchncs.de 83 points 2 weeks ago

Maybe they should spend less money on a fancy mold for their chocolate and more on better sourced cocoa beans with less lead in them: https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-safety/lead-and-cadmium-in-dark-chocolate-a8480295550/

[-] JoshuaFalken@lemmy.world 14 points 2 weeks ago

Sure, gram for gram, Tony's has 34% more lead than California would like, but their chocolate is still sold in the state.

To add to what @Maalus@lemmy.world pointed out, the Mast bar is 70g for $8, while Tony's bar is 180g for $6.

Gram for gram, Mast is more than triple the price.

[-] beefbot 57 points 2 weeks ago

Thanks for the advertisement?

[-] kindenough@kbin.earth 57 points 2 weeks ago

Quite succesful in the Netherlands.

In 2003, after discovering that the majority of chocolate produced at the time had links to human exploitation, Dutch television producer and journalist Teun van de Keuken began producing programs about the horrors of the commercial cocoa industry on his show Keuringsdienst van Waarde. Furthermore, he submitted a request to be prosecuted for knowingly purchasing an illegally manufactured product, which prosecutors declined to do.

After three years of unsuccessful attempts to change the industry through investigative efforts, Van de Keuken decided to start producing chocolate bars himself. The brand was called "Tony's Chocolonely" with "Tony" (= Teun) and "Chocolonely" in reference to Teun van de Keuken feeling as if he was the only person in the industry who was interested in eradicating slavery. Van de Keuken sold 20,000 bars in two days.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony%27s_Chocolonely https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teun_van_de_Keuken

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[-] Embarrassingskidmark@lemmy.world 48 points 2 weeks ago

If they paid the farmers more they could just make regular shaped chocolate

[-] prole 15 points 2 weeks ago

And miss out on this marketing opportunity? Lol don't be ridiculous.

[-] rustydrd@sh.itjust.works 10 points 2 weeks ago

Fait point, but it's a statement about the industry as a whole, not their own production. Even if they were to distribute profits evenly over the entire production chain of their products (which I agree they probably don't), the industry as a whole would still have this problem.

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[-] danekrae@lemmy.world 45 points 2 weeks ago

Funny that they made their brand the biggest piece of all in the representation.

[-] Evotech@lemmy.world 24 points 2 weeks ago

I'm reading it like they colonize Africa directly

[-] DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social 18 points 2 weeks ago

"It's UNFAIR that all of these countries exist! All must bow before Tony's West African Company."

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[-] 96VXb9ktTjFnRi@feddit.nl 40 points 2 weeks ago

Some info, that's interesting and helps balance this blatant advertisement. Tony's was started by Dutch television maker Teun van der Keuken. He worked on a program that exposes products for their production methods and false marketing and so on. They stumbled onto the slavery that's part of the cacao industry. He asked to be arrested for eating chocolate, and in doing so enabling slave labor, but he wasn't. He started out Tony's Chocolonely to attempt to change the chocolate industry. He's not part of the company anymore. He has concluded the mission has failed, and is very critical of his former company, saying they've lost sight of the aim: slave-free chocolate.

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[-] DerArzt@lemmy.world 38 points 2 weeks ago
[-] Hello_there@fedia.io 35 points 2 weeks ago

Around $5 and good chocolate

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[-] sinceasdf@lemmy.world 23 points 2 weeks ago

Damn that's just an ad. There is no escape

[-] Gladaed@feddit.org 21 points 2 weeks ago

The irregular pieces make it much easier to eat. You make a conscious decision how much you break off, instead of just getting another 4 squares.

[-] tetris11@lemmy.ml 14 points 2 weeks ago

Yes... haha.... conscious eating... haha...

First not sure why everyone is so sure this is an ad and not just OP likes this and the message.

I’ve contemplated posting about this chocolate, I guess we can’t call out companies we like and we just all shit on everything all the time.

Second, my friend called me out for paying £3.50 for a bar of this whenever we have a chocolate and film night when Cadbury is like £1.50. When I said it’s more ethically sourced he said I don’t care about that. 😞

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[-] tallpaul@lemm.ee 17 points 2 weeks ago

It's also why I no longer buy it. It's a PITA to eat.

[-] YeetPics@mander.xyz 16 points 2 weeks ago

Neato advertisement!

Products looks like shit.

[-] TheRealCharlesEames@lemm.ee 16 points 2 weeks ago

This is my favorite brand of chocolate rn

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[-] HeavyRaptor@lemmy.zip 10 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

I swear to god I need a rolling my eyes emoji for the shit I see on Lemmy sometimes.

Today's post is...
*Shuffles cards.
Inequality... Chocolate... so you can feel depressed about the world while you are eating chocolate.

(no offense to OP, maybe I'm just an old man who doesn't get it)

[-] SharkEatingBreakfast@sopuli.xyz 19 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Hey. I understand that maybe you're unaware of the nuance behind this. Almost all massive producers of chocolate rely of human exploitation and slavery to get their chocolate. Many "workers" are also young children. People need to know this.

I know that it seems like people might just be out to "spoil the fun", but the more you know about a product and how it is produced, you can make decisions about your consumption.

I've made decisions like purchasing the majority of my clothing secondhand, avoiding N×stlè products, cutting much of my meat consumption, etc. because I'm faced with the reality that my choices affect the lives around me, even if I do not see the impact directly.

It's upsetting to hear about the reality of things like this, but it's very very important to be informed. I do not want to simply consume a product if I know that it is actively harming lives and/or contributing to human suffering. If that means avoiding certain chocolate bars, so be it. I hope that someone would do the same for me, too, if I were in such a position.

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[-] BaldManGoomba@lemmy.world 10 points 2 weeks ago

The thing is you live in what is called the imperial core if you are a western nation citizen and especially if you are an American citizen. You get what you want for dirt cheap prices(even if you think it is expensive). Turns out many things you own or get is at the expense of other people who still live in dirt houses or just don't know where their next meal will come from or just in general an exploited people who isn't getting a sustainable compensation for their work. You get chocolate, an electric car, or diamonds at dirt cheap prices from the labor of people who don't even know what chocolate tastes like. You get chocolate because you enjoy chocolate. Chocolate is cheap because you demand it to be so you can have a little treat. You winge at learning about something while eating chocolate. We are sitting comfortable eating chocolate while you cry about learning about inequalities. You are asked to think about inequality about your little treat. It isn't about chocolate at all. Just take some time to consider your little treat is making someone millions while the person's hands who made it is hungry and will die at 40 because of the conditions they live in.

No we don't expect you to completely stop eating chocolate. No we don't expect you to change the world. We ask you to just think about other people for a moment while you take a break. I know it is hard since most people are being exploited in a different way here in the west and we have our own lives but at least we have so much food here that we won't go hungry with programs to help funded by how rich we are. While people who made our little treat dedicate some farm land for our tasty morsel when they are hungry themselves. Never to even know that there hands create a delicious thing we can buy for less than 20 minutes of our labor in America

[-] FinishingDutch@lemmy.world 10 points 2 weeks ago

Absolutely disgusting chocolate in my opinion. Chalky and bland. It’s nice that they claim to be about equality, but the product itself just isn’t to my taste. And yes, the dumb way they make these bars also really puts me off.

I just want a normal, boring bar that tastes nice. And this is not the brand for me.

[-] Name@feddit.nu 10 points 2 weeks ago

Are you American? I've heard that American chocolate taste a lot different from European chocolate

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this post was submitted on 09 Oct 2024
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