Villars
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 4 sources
Swiss chocolate maker in Fribourg.
Villars can't show that the people who grow its cocoa in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana earn a living wage, which workers there are very unlikely to.
Also worth knowing
It has no full independent audit.
Better-graded chocolate
Graded higher than Villars, selling the same kinds of things.
Know something we've missed? Send evidence. Represent Villars? Send a right of reply.
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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, 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 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, Nigeria and Indonesia, 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 or links
- Met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that listRuns its own factories
- 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 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
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 Villars'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
From Villars's own disclosure: it runs its own factories and says where its cocoa comes from. Its list covers only part of its range. The rest is shown as where cocoa is usually grown.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Côte d'Ivoire | Regular violations | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Ghana | Strong protections | Well below a living wage | Low |
| Ecuador | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Madagascar | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| CameroonUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| 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.
- Owns or runs its own production
- 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 Villars roasts its own cocoa at its factory in Fribourg. It names Madagascar, Ivory Coast, Ghana and Ecuador as cocoa origins without shares. It chose Rainforest Alliance certification and many bars in its shop are labelled with it, but it last reported only 30% of cocoa purchases as certified, aiming for 100% traced by 2025 with no update on progress. A minority of products use hazelnuts, described as Roman hazelnuts. No wage, audit or child labour data is published.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Chocolate Scorecard | Unclear | Neither Villars nor Savencia is among the companies shown in the 2026 (7th edition) Chocolate Scorecard ranking. View |
| Fairtrade (incl. FLOCERT and Fairtrade ANZ) | Unclear | Villars chose Rainforest Alliance certification but reported only 30% of cocoa purchases as certified, with a target of 100% traced by 2025. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 4
Show all 4 sources
- Villars Maître Chocolatier SA (Terroir Fribourg) · search the archive · Villars Maître Chocolatier SA is a chocolate producer based in the canton of Fribourg
Published by Villars or its owner
- Traditional know-how (Villars) · search the archive · Cocoa from Madagascar, Ivory Coast, Ghana and Ecuador; owned by Savencia since 1995; factory in Fribourg; uses Roman hazelnuts
- Villars commitments (Villars) · search the archive · 30% of cocoa purchases Rainforest Alliance certified; aims for 100% traced, sustainable cocoa by 2025; founding member of Chocosuisse platform
- Chocolate bars (Villars online shop) · search the archive · Many bars described as using Rainforest Alliance certified cocoa; own webshop delivers only within Switzerland and Liechtenstein
Company details
- Owned by
- Savencia SA
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Villars ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/villars, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Villars.