????好時（Hershey）Kiss巧克力遠比乍看之下復雜。生產這種食品及其他巧克力糖果所需的可可大都產于西非，經過漫長的供應鏈，萬里迢迢地來到美國工廠。

????好時這樣的財富500強巨頭必須為整條供應鏈上的每一個環節擔負起責任，如今，這種情況更是無以復加。1月30日，好時宣布，計劃投入1,000萬美元，用于在2017年前解決西非可可種植園中的童工問題。這筆資金還將幫助農民們獲得教育培訓，提高可可產量。

????好時的這一最新舉措屬于各方面為保護可可供應鏈而協同努力的一環。從2000年世界可可基金會（the World Cocoa Foundation）成立之日起，這一戰役就已經打響。該基金會促使包括好時及其競爭對手瑪氏（Mars）、雀巢（Nestlé）和卡夫（Kraft）在內的大型巧克力公司與可可生產國的政府和農戶攜起手來。

????大公司注重的是增長和利潤，這兩個數據與外國小農的生活狀況并沒有必然聯系。可是，可可生產具有的一些特征使得可持續發展對巧克力行業具有至關重要的意義。

可可是怎樣煉成的

????要維持可可的持續生產，就要求彼此競爭的企業展開合作，共同幫助農民，這談何容易。“全球包裝糖果行業的競爭極為激烈，”好時在2010年財報中寫道：“一些競爭對手規模比我們大得多，擁有的資源多得多，在國際市場的實力也更為強大。”

????不過，巧克力廠商的確存在共同利益，如果農民們能生產更多可可，所有業內巨頭都會得益。市場需求正在增長。隨著印度和中國等國日趨富裕，這兩個國家的中產階級正在蓬勃壯大，這個階層的新成員對咖啡和巧克力等奢侈性商品的胃口也日益顯現。

????同時，各大廠商還需密切關注環境和政治問題對可可收成的威脅。可可只適合在赤道氣候中生長，因此能種植可可的土地有限。受病蟲害侵害，每年有三分之一的可可樹顆粒無收。可可出產國政治形勢的不穩定也會進一步加劇市場的動蕩。例如，科特迪瓦貢獻了全球可可產量的三分之一。2011年，該國的一次地方性選舉引發政治動蕩，導致政府暫停一切出口。可可供應因此受限，價格也隨之暴漲。

????為了保證供給，企業必須直接與當地農民接觸。舉例來說，好時去年引入了一項稱為可可鏈（COCOALINK）的項目。鑒于多數農民已有手機，該項目通過短信向農民發送氣候和害蟲防控信息。“我們已經看到了真正與農民打交道、向其提供最可靠信息的裨益，”好時公關副總裁安德魯?麥克科米克表示。“初步結果顯示，這將在幾年內使可可產量翻一番。”

????巧克力廠商還在嘗試其他形式的社區活動。2009年，多家企業與比爾及梅琳達蓋茨基金會（the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation）攜手，通過一個4,000萬美元規模的計劃，來改善可可生產地區的教育，并改進可可的種植方法。

????A Hershey's Kiss is more complicated than it looks. Most of the cocoa in it and other chocolate candies comes from West Africa, and it makes its way through a long supply chain to get to U.S. factories.

????Now more than ever, Fortune 500 companies such as Hershey (HSY) have to take responsibility for every link in that chain. On January 30, Hershey announced plans to put $10 million towards solving child labor problems on West African cocoa farms by 2017. The money should also help farmers access educational programs and improve their cocoa yield.

????Hershey's latest move is part of a larger effort to secure the cocoa supply chain, a campaign that began with the founding of the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) in 2000. The WCF joined big chocolate companies -- including Hershey and its competitors Mars, Nestlé, and Kraft (KFT) -- with governments and farmers in cocoa-producing nations.

????Big businesses run on growth and profit, two figures that aren't necessarily linked to the well-being of small farmers in foreign countries. But certain characteristics of cocoa may put the chocolate industry in a sweet spot for sustainable development.

What goes into making our cocoa

????Sustainable cocoa development requires competing companies to work together to help farmers, no small hurdle. "The global confectionery packaged goods industry is intensely competitive," Hershey said in its 2010 annual report. "Some of our competitors are much larger firms that have greater resources and more substantial international operations."

????But there is common ground. All industry players benefit if farmers produce more cocoa. Market demand is growing. As nations like India and China grow wealthier, new members of their burgeoning middle classes have developed an appetite for luxury goods such as coffee and chocolate.

????At the same time, companies are keeping an eye on environmental and political threats to cocoa yields. Space to grow cocoa is limited; it only thrives in equatorial climates. About a third of the crop grown every year is trashed because of pests and disease. Unstable political conditions in cocoa-producing nations also adds to the volatility in the market. Cote d'Ivoire, for example, produces over a third of the world's cocoa. In 2011, political unrest surrounding a local election caused the government to cease all exports, which limited the cocoa supply and sent cocoa prices skyward.

????Companies need to get on the ground to ensure their supply. Hershey, for example, introduced a program called COCOALINK in 2011. COCOALINK distributes information about climate and pest control via SMS to farmers with cell phones, which most of them already have. "We're starting to see the benefits when you really get to the farmers and give them the best information," says Andrew McCormick, the vice president of public affairs at Hershey. "The preliminary results are that it will double crop yields in a couple of years."

????Chocolate companies are also working on other kinds of community outreach. In 2009, several companies joined the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation on a $40 million project to boost education and improve farming practices in cocoa-growing regions.