Australian supermarket chains are considering pulling Nutella from store shelves after reports that child labourers help harvest the hazelnuts used by parent company Ferrero Rocher to make the spread, the Sydney Morning Herald reported on Tuesday.
Last week, the BBC reported that many children are among the migrants working long hours for low pay to harvest hazelnuts in Turkey, which produces 70 percent of the world’s hazelnuts, including those that end up in Nutella, Kinder and other Ferrero products.
Leading Australian supermarket chains Woolworths, Coles and IGA have reached out to Ferrero for further information on product sourcing.
“We are aware of these reports and have contacted the supplier for further information on its response to the matter,” a Woolworths spokesperson told British newspaper the Daily Mail.
Turkey is home to more than 400,000 family-owned hazelnut orchards where children as young as 10 work up to 10 hours a day for as little as 65 lira ($11), the BBC reported.
Ahval