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Rowntree Society investigates history of slavery and forced labour in cocoa company’s colonial-era past By Anthony Myers The Rowntree Society has said it has uncovered links to slavery and historic racial abuse in the brand s supply chain in light of the Black Lives Matter movement. The Rowntree chocolate factory in York was founded in 1862 and is the home of the KitKat bar since 1935.
Research into the company’s past, carried out last year partly in response to the Black Lives Matter movement, reviewed the company’s global supply chains and histories of slavery, forced labour, colonialism and racial injustice.
1/1 AN investigation into the history of the Rowntree chocolate company has produced shocking evidence that the famously philanthropic family business may have profited from slavery and forced labour. Research by the Rowntree Society prompted partly by the Black Lives Matter movement has also uncovered allegations of racial discrimination and anti-union tactics at the firm’s South African subsidiary Wilson Rowntree during the apartheid era as recently as the early 1980s. A statement by the Rowntree Society today stressed that it had found no evidence that Rowntrees, which donated Rowntree Park to the people of York and also set up the New Earswick model village , directly owned or traded in enslaved people.
NESTLÉ, the confectionery giant which bought out Rowntree Mackintosh in the 1980s and continues to make chocolate in York, today welcomed the research by the Rowntree Society into Rowntree’s past. A spokesperson said: “Since 1988, Nestlé has been the custodian of Rowntree’s as a confectionery brand and we welcome these statements made by other organisations that bear the Rowntree name. “This is a very important piece of work that expands the well-known history of the Rowntree’s Company and recognises the significant impact of colonialism at the turn of the 20th century. Nestlé is a diverse, global company that is firmly anti-racist and has zero tolerance for slavery.
Joseph Rowntree report explores historic slavery connections
Rebecca Cooney finds out how the Joseph Rowntree charities plan to deal with the bitter aftertaste of their colonial history
by Rebecca Cooney
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