Cadbury

Is Cadbury an ethical and sustainable chocolate brand? 

Cadbury is a chocolate brand owned by Mondelēz which is considered unethical in our ratings. Cadbury products can be found in many of The Good Shopping Guide’s Ethical Ratings Tables including Chocolate, Biscuits, Ice Cream and various other food sectors. Cadbury does not currently meet our ethical benchmark, though we hope that the brand will make necessary changes so that progress will be made in the future. However, this will require several years of significant improvements, both by the brand and its parent company.

Find out more about Fairtrade chocolate with The Good Shopping Guide to Ethical Chocolate and compare to other brands in our Ethical Chocolate Ratings Table.

What does Cadbury do?

Cadbury was started up in 1824 by John Cadbury in Birmingham, initially selling cocoa and drinking chocolate. Since then Cadbury has expanded, now operating in 50 countries worldwide and selling a large range of chocolate-based products including vegan chocolate, biscuits and ice cream.

See how Cadbury and other brands rank in these sectors with our Ethical Biscuits Ratings Table and our Ethical Ice Cream Ratings Table.

In 2010 Cadbury was sold to the parent company Mondelēz International for £11.5 billion, making them another addition to the Mondelēz chocolate brand portfolio.

For which criteria does Cadbury perform poorly? 

Cadbury scored low in Animal Welfare, Political donations and GM products. Its parent company Mondelēz released a policy on Genetically-Modified ingredients that suggests the usage of this within their products and also donates thousands of dollars in the USA to political parties, candidates and PACs.

Cadbury has faced criticism after allegations of child labour, which came to light in April 2022 when video evidence was found through an investigation in Ghana which is a part of Cadbury’s supply chain. Greenpeace also conducted an investigation that uncovered complex soya supply chains, linking Cadbury and other British dairy products to environmental devastation in Brazil. Due to this, and many other criticisms, the company receives a bottom rating in the Public Record Criticisms and Public Record Criticisms+ categories.

In what areas does Cadbury score well for its ethics?

Cadbury performed well in the Vegetarian/vegan category, as it has products certified by The Vegan Society.

Cadbury also has no involvement in the Nuclear Power, Fossil Fuels or Armaments industries, resulting in a top rating in these categories.

How can Cadbury improve its ethical rating?

The Good Shopping Guide calculates a brand’s Ethical Score through three main criteria: the Environment, People and Animals.

For Cadbury to reach the minimum ethical benchmark required to receive Ethical Accreditation, it must resolve the issues discovered within the supply chain including animal welfare, environmental and human rights issues. Also, removing Genetically-Modified ingredients from its products would be beneficial.

Why not check out The Good Shopping Guide‘s Ethical Accreditation if you work for or with a chocolate company that places ethics high on its priority list? This certification of sustainability and ethics has benefited chocolate manufacturers including Seed & Bean, Alter Eco, and Raw Living. Contact us to learn more, or complete our short form for an initial evaluation.