Cadbury Plc Performances to the Society and Community

Today, the increase of the social awareness rendering the consumers be more sensitive, judgmental towards the product and companies (Seb Chan 2007). Therefore, companies should consider on their performances from the society eye. Intend to avoid the business issue or problem and keep their position in the global market (Institute of Market Economics 2007).As one of the biggest British companies engaged in confectionery manufacture (Food Business Review n.d.), the success rate of Cadbury can be determined by the company’s performances to the stakeholder and the society as the way to shared understanding each other or called as social contract This paper examines the performances of Cadbury Plc relate to the Stakeholder which are Consumer and Community.

Indentify the company issues of the chocolate product that bring impact to the consumer and their contribution as the step of fights against poverty and slavery issue on the fair trade.The well-known problem of Cadbury is the contribution on obesity to the children. The company has to take the responsibility regarding their product of Cadbury’s Diary Milk that raise the obesity rates. As the evidence of this, The Sunday Times (October 28, 2004) reported that Health figures in the UK show 8.

5 per cent of six-year-olds and 15 per cent of 15-year-olds are obese. The Food Standards Agency predicts that obesity will cost approximately of UK £3.6 billion a year by 2010. Therefore, to solve obesity issue and criticized by stakeholder, Cadbury has attempt to preventing it by change the ingredient and resize the portion of the chocolate (Glaetzer 2009).

Furthermore, the recent business issues befalling to the Cadbury is the issue of salmonella bacteria contaminated to the chocolate product. The BBC NEWS (July 16, 2006) stated that salmonella contamination considering being big issues when revealed that there had been 56 cases of salmonella infection after the consumption of Cadbury chocolate. As the result, Cadbury charged for the guilty of the issue and fined around £1 million because of distributing an unsafe chocolate to the public (Out law 2007).Further, the salmonella contamination had big impact to the company, which is: The company had to recalled the products around 1 million chocolate bars costing £5 million from the market.

And another £20m to change the procedures and repaired the source of problem to prevent another problem to happen again in the future (Forbes 2006). Which contamination was caused by the leaking waste water pipe. The pipe dripped the bacteria into the chocolate crumb that used to make the chocolate bars (microbiologynews 2007). How the Cadbury's handle and respond to the scandal of food poisoning was contrast to the traditional crisis management of being open, honest and responsive (Carroll 2009) also collaborative as their values (Cadbury n.

d).Cadbury considered cannot capable to solve the scandal quickly as company fault to inform the Food Standards Agency and public for five months after the problem occurred and the y are advised to improve their lateness on private testing the contamination procedures (Carter 2006). Cadbury also denied the media report that the company should consider on compensation to the victims and not respond the Food Standard Agency that the company had neglected the requirement on hygiene guidelines (Elamin 2006).As the result of incident, the Cadbury’s Diary Milk chocolate selling fallen by 2.

5 percent and clear the reason is caused by the lack of consumer confidence and damaged public trust on the brand (Adam, Martin and Joelle 2009). The fine that charged Cadbury £1 million because of the lack of safety procedure should consider put into their perspective. Because “a simple leak in a production facility can snowball and jeopardize the entire brand.”(Lindgreen 2009, 25). The Salmonella is a bacterium that can cause stomach upset, fever, vomiting, and abdominal cramps. Salmonella infection can injure or even killed the people who consume it (Salyer 2009).

Cadbury really have to puts safety on priority, regarding it is a huge company. Moreover, the fines that reach £1 million are contrasting if estimate to the profit of Cadbury brand that reached £1 billion a year in UK sales and loss confidence and trust in Cadbury’s brand by the consumer (Elliot 2006). Thus, when the crisis happens, company really need public affairs who can observe, understand and as the bridge between business and society because the crisis affected most to the company’s stakeholder (Watkins n.d).

It is important how the company can handle the situation properly because consumers will always scared if there any product could potentially make them sick (Myers 2006).On the other hand, Cadbury express their corporate responsibility and ethic business as one of the huge chocolate’s manufacture producers to stand against the slave child labor and supporting the fair trade. Following their commitment to respecting human right and trading ethnically (Cadbury n.d). The Child slave labor have great bond to the chocolate business today.

Documentary of British TV that claimed that 90 percent of the Ivory Coast cocoa as the world's biggest producer of cocoa beans used the slave labor (Pearson 2001). This situation happened due to cocoa farmer who receive fewer profit that caused by the price competition between the farms and the unstable cocoa price in the market, therefore it lead them to utilize the child slave labor (MacDonald 2006).The purpose is obvious to gain more profit because Slavery is profitable consider on the contrast between the payment and the work hour. The imagery of this situation is like drinking the chocolate and drinking the blood, the blood that come from the child who are wounded and tortured (Edward 2007). Consumer becomes horrified after the issue was revealed, Immediately Cadbury stated that their products are untainted by slavery (Raghavan and Chatterje 2001).

Cadbury is proven that none of their cocoa bean was brought from the growers that using slave labors.Which are they got their cocoa beans from Ghana in West Africa (Cadbury n.d). The BBC News (April 17, 2001) stated that 90% of Cadbury’s cocoa bean is imported from Ghana and believed is free of slavery.

Fair trade is one way to ending this slavery issue. Fair trade is the organization and foundation, which will give higher price and purchased directly to cocoa farmer for their cocoa so they will not rely to the forced Labor (North 2005). The Fairtrade aims are to improve livelihoods farmers and workers and contribute to the poverty reduction (Duncan, Dufey and Patel 2006).Cadbury prove their ethnic business to responsible as corporation and concern on community. Cadbury considered the one who take the first step to support and contribute on the fair trade, their effort to solve the issue could be seen as Cadbury use the Fair Trade’s cocoa beans to produce their Cadbury’s Diary Milk (Alter 2009).

The cocoa beans from Fairtrade will charge more than the normal market price. Cadbury receive the additional Fairtrade premium cost 5% per tone.However, even Cadbury pay more on the premium cost, Cadbury does not increase the prices of their product that bring the Fairtrade status (Cadbury n.d).

As the Managing Director of Cadbury Australia and New Zealand, Mark Callaghan said, “the same taste, the same cost, but extra ethics”. Hence, The premium cost is for the environmental improvements, for instances the education and healthcare in Africa and improving life of the farmers in part of the world (Fair trade Foundation n.d). In addition, Cadbury could also encourage the competitors to do the same, then it will increase the quantity of Fairtrade certified cocoa to the global market so the fair trade is more visible to the society (Cleary 2009).

Cadbury also present that consumer have power that could give a change and freedom (Eyre 2008). Consumer can participated to solve on this slavery issues if purchase their product with the Fairtrade label. Moreover, Cadbury has shown their responsibility to the community. By helping billions people who living in poverty, support and provide farmers with stable prices for their produce so farmer earn better living (Fair trade Foundation n.d).

They are listening to the consumer and showing that they can make change by reduce poverty and demolish slavery.In summary, Cadbury has shown their performances being ethically and responsible towards the communities and society in two ways, positive and negative. In the negative way, the Cadbury cannot handle the situation related to salmonella contamination in proper way. Cadbury considered slow to solve the following issue, causing the consumer to get the impact. They are failed to fulfill their obligations to their stakeholders and Disregard social contract to expecting each other, to fulfill the consumers satisfactory on the product. As the result the Cadbury is loss the trust from the Consumer.

On the other hand, Cadbury contribution on the Fairtrade and the effort to reduce the poverty and slavery will give huge scale impact on the community which could changing a live of thousand people. Cadbury has to fulfill the responsibility as the corporation regarding they are huge company, having large range of stakeholders and being the society concern. How the company serves and respond the society will affect the expectation of public in the return to the company.Referenceshttp://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/restaurants-and-bars/cadbury-introduces-fair-trade-chocolate-bar-20100510-uoua.htmlhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/5112470.stmhttp://www.palgrave-journals.com/crr/journal/v12/n1/full/crr200834a.htmlhttp://www.globalexchange.org/fairtrade/cocoa/cooperatives