Cémoi
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 23 October 2026 · 8 sources
French chocolate maker owned by Sweet Products, making bars and pralines.
Cémoi can't show that the people who grow its cocoa in Côte d'Ivoire and Ecuador earn a living wage, which workers there are very unlikely to.
Also worth knowing
It has no full independent audit.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 2 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 2 red flags: no evidence of a living wage and unaudited production in high-risk countries. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- It isn't Harm on record: the most serious problem on its record (child labour, last recorded in 2025) was found by its own checks and is being fixed.
- 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.
- Checks its own supply chain. Cémoi looks for problems in its own supply chain and publishes what it finds. It found child labour in 2025 and is fixing it, so it doesn't count against the grade. It's listed below under Confirmed issues.
Good requirements 2 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsSome of its cocoa is grown in Ecuador, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
- 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 it isn't fixingIts own checks found child labour, which it is fixing. That's listed below and doesn't count against the grade.
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Met: Finds and fixes child labour on cocoa farms (Fairtrade, Fair for Life or its own published monitoring), and traces other high-risk ingredients where they're a major part of its range
Red flags 2
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Made partly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of its supply chain
| Star | Awarded for |
|---|---|
| Finds and fixes problems, or invests in communities |
Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Estimates for its products
Our rules applied to one kind of product at a time, using Cémoi'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
Cémoi says which countries its cocoa comes from, but doesn't name the farms or co-operatives.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Côte d'Ivoire | Regular violations | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Ecuador | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Peru | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Dominican Republic | Strong protections | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
Evidence
What we found
- Passes the raw-material check for chocolate: finds and fixes child labour on cocoa farms (Fairtrade, Fair for Life or its own published monitoring).
- Traces high-risk raw materials to the mine or farm and fixes problems found
- Reports child labour cases found and fixed
- Invests in worker and farming communities
Research notes Cémoi, France's largest chocolate maker, buys cocoa through its own Transparence Cacao programme, founded in 2015, from partner cooperatives in Côte d'Ivoire, Ecuador, Peru, the Dominican Republic and São Tomé, and runs a chocolate factory in Côte d'Ivoire. The programme reports 100% of its cocoa traced to cooperatives and farmers, a premium paid on all of it, Bureau Veritas checks of some cooperatives and a goal of a living income for all its farmers by 2030, but no cooperative list or country shares. Only its organic chains are Fair for Life or Fairtrade certified.
Confirmed issues 1
Only confirmed problems are listed, and old ones drop off after 10 to 15 years. A problem the company has fully put right no longer counts against it, and nor does one it finds and is fixing itself. How problems are counted
| Last recorded | What happened | Made amends? |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Cémoi's Transparence Cacao 2026 progress report states that 7,629 children were identified and supported through child labour remediation in its cocoa supply chain in 2025. Source · search the archiveFound and being fixed by the company Not counted against the grade while the company is actively fixing it, because it found and published it itself. | PartlyCémoi's Transparence Cacao programme says the children identified were supported through remediation; 85% of partner cooperatives had a child labour monitoring system in 2025. |
Sources and actions
Sources 8
Show all 8 sources
- Cemoi confectionery group makes gains against cocoa traceability goals (Confectionery Production, 2022) · search the archive · 54% of cocoa traceable to farmer level; 2,720 farmers in three cooperatives in Côte d'Ivoire; indicators monitored by AVSF
- Transparence Cacao 2026 progress report (2025 data) · search the archive · Founded by Cémoi in 2015; origins Côte d'Ivoire, Ecuador, Peru, Dominican Republic, São Tomé; 100% traceable; 7,629 children remediated in 2025; living income goal 2030
- Transparence Cacao · search the archive · 100% traceable cocoa and georeferenced farms; 32 partner cooperatives; 22,998 participating farmers; six origins in West and Central Africa and Latin America
- Cémoi shows leadership in the cocoa industry (Earthworm Foundation, 2015) · search the archive · Transparence programme sourcing from smallholders in Ivory Coast; Cémoi buys about 3% of global cocoa beans
- French chocolate company Cémoi joins International Cocoa Initiative (ICI, 2021) · search the archive · Joined ICI in 2021; Transparence Cacao includes a child labour prevention plan and school projects; aims to reach 60,000 farmers
- How Cémoi is committed to sustainable cocoa production in Ivory Coast (METRO, 2025) · search the archive · Family-run French chocolate maker with permanent teams in Côte d'Ivoire; batches traceable to origin under Transparence Cacao
- Jacques jette son dévolu sur un géant français du chocolat (RetailDetail, 2021) · search the archive · Cémoi is France's largest chocolate maker, turnover €750 million in 2020, with a factory in Côte d'Ivoire
- Sweet Products finalizes the acquisition of French Groupe Cémoi (SG Network, 2021) · search the archive · Belgian group Sweet Products completed the acquisition of Cémoi in 2021; Cémoi has 14 factories
Company details
- Headquarters
- France
- Last researched
- 23 October 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Cémoi ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/cemoi, last researched 23 October 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
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