Youtube star “Mr Beast” Feastables snacking group joins Tony’s Chocolonely’s Open Chain
Feastables, founded in the US by YouTuber "Mr Beast" has main rapid gains in the past two years. Pic: Feastables
US-based Feastables snacking group, founded by Youtube influencer Jimmy Donaldson, aka, ‘Mr Beast’ has joined impact confectionery group Tony’s Chocolonely’s Open Chain ethical sourcing initiative, writes Neill Barston.
The move has been hailed by the Dutch business as especially critical, as its latest partner is the first in America within the chocolate category to commit to its mission to drive down child labour within core sourcing markets of Ivory Coast and neighbouring Ghana.
According to Tony’s, the two organisations have been in conversations since October 2023, signed an agreement in March 2024, and this coming harvest will be scaling up their partnership.
This partnership is a significant step within Feastables’ larger commitment to transform the West African cocoa sector by working on-the-ground with farmers, workers and within their communities to address the inequities faced by millions throughout the supply chain.
Founded in 2022,, Feastables has set out to make a positive impact in the chocolate snacking industry by helping prevent children working on (largely smallholder owned family farms), where they often conduct tasks including heavy labour that are unsuitable for minors.
“We’re trying to do things differently because the way the sector currently defines what is right and what is ethical, doesn’t always help West African kids or their families,” said Donaldson. “It’s why we’re hiring sector experts, why we’ve partnered with leaders like Tony’s Open Chain, and why we’re already listening and working with local West African partners.
“We recognise this is a big challenge, but Feastables is fully committed to the communities that need this the most. We are in this for the long run.”Tony’s Open Chain is on a mission to set a new standard for the chocolate industry where all brands come together and take responsibility to drive structural change towards a more equally divided cocoa chain. We are now one step closer to that mission,” said Joke Aerts, Open Chain Lead at Tony’s Chocolonely, who earlier this month was among our keynote speakers at our World Confectionery Conference “We welcome conversations with many more US based players as we continue transforming cocoa supply chains in West Africa.”
Adriaan Verbeke, Global Head of Ethical Sourcing at Feastables believed that joining the venture would make a positive step forward for improving standards within the sector, which are under renewed scrutiny with the upcoming EUDR laws that bring deforestation protection, and aim to ensure human rights are respected in supply chains with new mandatory operating requirements.
“We know this will take time – but we can’t do it alone so partnerships like the one with Tony’s Open Chain matter,” noted Adriaan, on joining the Dutch company’s global initiative.
