Fairtrade Finland launches “Chocogeddon” campaign to highlight climate change impact
Fairtrade Finland has launched a campaign highlighting the potential prospect of “Chocogeddon,” the end of chocolate as we know it, raising awareness of the impact of climate change on cocoa production in key territories.
According to the organisation, the industry as it presently exists may disappear, or become a rare luxury treat, by 2050 because of predictions that rising global temperatures will affect crops and force farmers either out of business or to switch to other more profitable agricultural markets.
The campaign was unveiled to kick-start Fairtrade Week in Finland (21-27 October), with the video content created by hasan & partners, aiming to increase understanding of the organisation’s certification among younger audiences, which in turn would increase sales of chocolate products made with Fairtrade chocolate.
Four short videos of a melting chocolate snowy owl, monkey, African elephant and a frog starkly symbolise the earth heating-up and its effect on the environment. The animals were selected because they represent the fate of all wildlife as a result of climate change. Each video signs off with the endline: “Save the chocolate, choose Fairtrade
chocolate”.
In Finland, the snowy owl is extremely endangered because of climate change. Frogs all over the world are suffering, but it’s particularly poignant in Ghana, which is the world’s second-biggest cocoa producer.
The African elephant will have a hard time adapting to a changing environment and the real threat of extinction would also “speed up the climate crisis”. Monkeys in South America are vulnerable and face an “elevated risk of extinction”.
Helinä Leppänen, creative at hasan & partners, commented: “With melting chocolate animals we are raising awareness of how climate change threatens cocoa trees and the wildlife that surrounds it. The world is buzzing about the environment but we need to bring the message home
in more ways. If chocolate as we know it disappears by 2050, maybe people will look to organisations like Fairtrade to make a stand.”
Mirka Kartano, communications and marketing manager at Fairtrade Finland, added: “Buying Fairtrade certified chocolate has a positive impact on the environment as it supports producers with tools and practices to adapt. When producers are certified as Fairtrade, they commit to environmental standards that protect the local ecosystem. With Fairtrade, chocolate lovers have the power to change the world with simple shopping choices, which also means encouraging chocolate producers to switch to Fairtrade.”
