Christian Aid: Chocolate Trade Game + Lesson Resources

The Chocolate Trade Game is one of the popular and highly interactive games for classroom use created by Christian Aid. The Game takes approx. 1 hour to play. It can be used as a key part in a series of lessons, or at pupil conferences to get people thinking about poverty and their responses to it.

There are no specific links to CfE Experiences and Outcomes, but these can be readily made. Downloadable teachers’ notes include information sheets for pupils and full instructions on how the game may be used in the classroom.

This simulation game looks at the experiences of Ghanaian cocoa farmers in the cocoa trading chain. It highlights the role of international trade in the manufacture and marketing of chocolate and the way that the trading system affects the lives and livelihoods of the farmers. The Chocolate Trade Game also looks at how a cocoa farmers’ cooperative in Ghana is working to improve conditions for its members through fair trade. The experiences of these farmers are similar to those of many primary producers across the world, who are caught in a trading system that benefits the multinational companies of rich countries, such as the UK and Ireland. This game also highlights the positive part that trade can play in communities that are developing their economies.

The Chocolate Trade Game is designed to be flexible and adaptable. It may be used as part of a topic in Social Studies/Geography/Modern Studies or RME or some forms of Social Education. Equally, it is suitable for as part of an interdisciplinary learning experience.