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Week 9
Salaaz Market
03 Dec • Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes
Another week, another newsletter! With the holiday season right around the corner, we’re diving into something sweet—chocolate brands and their better, more ethical alternatives. Plus, we’re turning the page on the power of books and exploring how art shapes perspectives on the Israel-Palestine conflict. Grab a cozy drink, settle in, and enjoy this week’s edition—we had a blast putting it together for you!
Cadbury & Mondelez
We know we talk about chocolate companies a lot, but with the holidays just around the corner, it’s no surprise—this is the time of year when chocolate sales hit their peak. From chocolate bars and hot cocoa to gift boxes and seasonal treats, it’s everywhere. Our goal? To make sure you’re informed and confident about your next chocolate purchase, so it’s as sweet for the world as it is for you.
Now, growing up, my parents always told me their favourite chocolate was Dairy Milk. Nothing could top it’s sweet, smooth flavour for my south asian parents. Unfortunately, while Dairy Milk was creating good childhood memories for some kids, it was creating memories of slavery for others. The Guardian writes that Cadbury had promised to remove child slavery over 20 years ago, and has still failed to rid their supply chain of it.
An study by the social research group NORC at the University of Chicago in 2020 found 1.56 million children were involved in the cocoa industry in Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire. Now, we’re not saying Cadbury and it’s parent company Mondelez are employing all of them, but they’re still employing children as young as 10 in their own farms. That’s not all - Mondelez is known for investments in Israeli start-ups.
Unreal Chocolates: Alternatives to your favs
Now we’ve previously mentioned Laura Secord, Camino, Russel Stover, but once again, we’ve found another sustainably sourced, fair trade certified, b-corp chocolate brand for you. But this one is better, why? Because it is their mission to make alternatives for all your favourite brands. Craving M&Ms, Bounty, Snickers or Reeses’s Cups, well guess what, you don’t have to be sad about your boycott of Mars chocolates see our previous newsletter, you can buy Unreal instead, available at your local Whole Foods, Costco, or online.
If you need more push, their CEO, Kristopher Bronner, spoke at a Ted Talk on how his brand is dedicated to proving junk food can be unjunked. And his passion for making junk food a choice for everyone, at the same cost as the junk food.
$16.9 USD million estimated annual revenue
Made completely in the USA & Canada
Art Tours:
No Arms In The Arts Tour
The annual Giller prize, is one of the most esteemed literary awards for authors around Canada. The Giller prize is primarily sponsored through Scotiabank, and as we’ve highlighted in a previous newsletter, Scotiabank maintains a $112 million stake in Elbit, Israel’s largest arms manufacturer. In response to Giller’s refusal to cut ties with pro-Israeli sponsors such as Scotiabank, this year over 40 artists have band together, to have their works withdrawn from and cut ties from the Giller programming, and are urging other editors, translators, publishers, critics, library workers, and booksellers - to join the Boycott Giller campaign.
In the face of mass dissent from boycotting authors and book workers, the Giller has quietly cancelled its cross-country finalists’ tour, and the No Arms In The Arts Tour has taken it’s place, to read the work of Palestinian authors together, to center Palestinian liberation, and recommit to our solidarity in struggle.
We have missed the dates, however, you can check out the full details here, and keep your eyes open for the next similar event, and so will we.
We hope you enjoyed this week’s newsletter, give us your feedback below and we look forward to seeing you again next week!