A recent investigation by Repórter Brasil, together with Swiss media Tages Anzeiger, revealed that the Brazilian subsidiary of Barry Callebaut — one of the world’s largest chocolate companies — was condemned for profiting from child labour and conditions similar to slavery in its cocoa supply chain. The case was kept under judicial secrecy until late 2025, only becoming public after the media pressed Brazil’s Superior Labour Court (TST) about the secrecy.
According to the article:
- The MPT accused Barry Callebaut of buying cocoa without any real oversight, sourcing from suppliers previously flagged for forcing adults to work in slave-like conditions and exploiting children.
- Labour inspections confirmed the abuses. On one farm in Bahia, nine workers were rescued from conditions analogous to slavery, with families living in unsafe housing and bathing in contaminated water from a shallow well.
- After the inspections, the MPT proposed a Conduct Adjustment Term (TAC) in 2020 to stop the abuses. Barry Callebaut refused.
- The first-instance judge in Salvador ruled that the company cannot simply “passively watch all illegal labour practices” upstream in its supply chain.
- The ruling was upheld on appeal, with the Regional Labour Court stating that Barry Callebaut “indirectly, aiming to maximize profits, appropriated the productive force of child workers, as well as labour in sub-human conditions analogous to slavery.”
- At the Superior Labour Court (TST), the company argues it only buys cocoa and cannot be held responsible for supplier practices, claiming there is no outsourcing or employment relationship, and requesting the conviction be annulled.
- The MPT is explicit: Barry Callebaut ignores serious human rights violations to make more profit, effectively encouraging suppliers to continue exploiting workers, and must be held accountable.
- Since December 2024, the case has been awaiting a final judgment at the TST, which is analysing appeals from both the MPT and Barry Callebaut. The minister responsible for the case has said she will rule in the first months of 2026.
You can read the full article here, and Barry Callebaut’s official positioning here.
Cases like this show that the problem isn’t complexity — it’s power. Large international chocolate companies are not struggling to ensure ethical sourcing; they are sustaining systems that depend on cheap, untraceable cocoa.
For decades, they’ve built supply chains that allow them to profit while denying responsibility for what happens at the farm level.
Real change won’t come from corporate sustainability reports, but from transparent trade, direct relationships, and fair pricing that make exploitation impossible to hide.
