Did You Know...

More than 75% of chocolate consumed in the United States comes from 600,000 cocoa farms in Ivory Coast.

That U.S. consumers eat 2.8 billion pounds of chocolate annually, representing nearly half the world's supply.

60% of Ivorian children of cocoa farmers receive no education at all.

Large chocolate companies who control most of the American market are not doing enough, and by buying Fair Trade you are bypassing conventional systems of exploitation to the benefit of impoverished cocoa farmers and their villages.

Who We Are

Project Hope & Fairness, Inc., is a California public benefit corporation that is in a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS. We are a volunteer organization based in San Luis Obispo, California, that was created to assist African cocoa farmers who suffer disproportionately from the inequities in the world cocoa trade with particular focus on the participation of chocolate producers and consumers in the United States. Currently, our Board of Directors has three members.

Tom Neuhaus is the president and founder Project Hope & Fairness, Inc. Tom first thought of donating solar-powered freezers to villages after visiting Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Cameroon in 2003 and 2004. On his 2005 trip, during which he interviewed several Ivorian cocoa farmers, it became apparent that one way of bringing more money into cocoa-growing villages would be to provide tools that would make the farmer more competitive. Tom is an owner of Sweet Earth Organic Chocolates the only uniquely Fair Trade/Organic artisan chocolatier in the U.S. He is also an Associate Professor in the Department of Food Science and Nutrition at California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) in San Luis Obispo. Tom is a recognized expert on Fair Trade chocolate, having strong connections with the Organic Consumers Association, Global Exchange and the International Labor Relief Fund. He does speaking engagements in order to promote Fair Trade and the foundation.

Ernie Roide is the Chief Financial Officer and Secretary of Project Hope & Fairness, Inc. Ernie is a graduate of Cal Poly (B.A., Graphical Arts) and holds an M.B.A., also from Cal Poly. He is an owner of Promotion Plus, Inc. based in San Luis Obispo and specializes in the use of printed media to promote advertising campaigns. Ernie brings his concern about the unjust distribution of wealth in our world to the Board and wants to use his promotional savvy to make people aware of social justice issues. Ernie and his wife, Tawn, have three children.

Eric Parkinson is an attorney and also a director of the non-profit charitable organization, VeAhavta.


Tom Neuhaus	Ernie Roide	Eric Parkinson