Cachet
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 6 sources
Kim's Chocolates brand of Belgian chocolate bars, including an organic range.
Cachet can't show that the people who grow its cocoa in Uganda and Tanzania earn a living wage, which workers there are very unlikely to.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 1 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It doesn't show that workers are paid a living wage, and isn't certified as working towards one. On Track needs at least one of these.
- It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
- Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.
Good requirements 1 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsJudged on where its cocoa is grown: worker rights are poorly protected in Ecuador, Cameroon and Uganda.
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Not met: Finds and fixes child labour on cocoa farms (Fairtrade, Fair for Life or its own published monitoring), and traces other high-risk ingredients (hazelnuts) where they're a major part of its range
Red flags 1
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Estimates for its products
Our rules applied to one kind of product at a time, using Cachet's evidence and, where it has product lines, that line's countries. They're estimates: we don't know which factory made any single item.
- A product carrying the Fairtrade mark: Good
Holding one? Scan its barcode for an estimate that uses its care label or ingredients.
Where its cocoa is grown
Cachet says its cocoa comes from Uganda, Tanzania, DR Congo and Peru. Product labels show Costa Rica. The rest is shown as where cocoa is usually grown.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Côte d'IvoireUsual for the industry | Regular violations | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| GhanaUsual for the industry | Strong protections | Well below a living wage | Low |
| EcuadorUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| CameroonUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Uganda | Systematic violations | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Tanzania | Systematic violations | Far below a living wage | Low |
| DR Congo | Systematic violations | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Peru | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Costa Rica | Systematic violations | Below a living wage | Low |
| NigeriaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| IndonesiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
Evidence
What we found
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: an estimated 1.5 million children work on cocoa farms in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana, and most cocoa farmers earn well below a living income. (partly offset by certification or direct sourcing)
- It doesn't show that it checks cocoa farms for child labour and fixes what it finds.
- Uses hazelnuts in only a few products and doesn't show where they come from. That doesn't count against it for Good, but the "Open supply chain" star needs all of them traced, certified or upcycled.
Research notes Rainforest Alliance lists Cachet chocolate as made with certified cocoa (updated September 2026), and an eight-bar organic range is certified organic. Its catalogue names cocoa from Uganda, Tanzania and Congo for its blend and origin bars from Uganda, Tanzania and Peru, and a Costa Rica bar is sold by retailers; no shares are given. Kim's has funded farmer training, seedlings and classrooms in Tanzania with Barry Callebaut's Cocoa Horizons Foundation since 2016, but publishes no farm list, wage data or audit results.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Chocolate Scorecard | Not listed | Neither Cachet nor Kim's Chocolates is among the companies rated in the 2026 Chocolate Scorecard. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 6
Show all 6 sources
- Cachet (Rainforest Alliance certified products) · search the archive · Cachet chocolate listed with certified cocoa (updated Sept 2026); sold in Europe and US, not Australia
- Windel acquires The Chocolate Family (Just Food, 2025) · search the archive · Kim's Chocolates is a Windel Group company
- Cachet Catalogue 2022 (food.be) · search the archive · Eight-bar organic range, Rainforest Alliance; blend of Uganda, Tanzania and Congo cocoa; Peru, Tanzania, Uganda bars; hazelnut lines
- Cachet Costa Rica 71% extra dark chocolate (Ardkeen) · search the archive · Cachet sells a Costa Rica origin bar
- Barry Callebaut, CHF and Kim's Chocolates team up in Tanzania (2016) · search the archive · Kim's funds seedlings, farmer training and Cocoa for Schools classrooms in Kyela, Tanzania
Published by Cachet or its owner
- Cachet (Kim's Chocolates) · search the archive · Brand of Kim's Chocolates N.V.
Company details
- Headquarters
- Belgium
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Cachet ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/cachet, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
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Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Cachet.