Do it for the chocolate

Our warming planet likely means flooded New York City, more fires and mudslides near Los Angeles, and millions of migrants when sea levels rise or drought turns an area into an unlivable desert. The world needs our help.

You don’t do it for the hordes of migrants? Don’t do it polar bears? Sigh.

At least do it for the chocolate.

Yeah, chocolate may become a victim of global warming. The sensitive cacao plant grows only in rainforest areas in a narrow band about 20 degrees north and south of the equator. Temperature, rain, and humidity need to be fairly constant through the year. Half of our chocolate comes from Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana in West Africa. The cacao crop could be severely damaged if global warming makes the area too hot or too dry. The threat is real enough that cacao may go extinct by 2050. The University of California with the Mars candy company are exploring what to do about it.

Mars is working on two fronts. The first is reducing the carbon footprint of itself and its suppliers. The second is to try to create a stronger cacao plant through genetic engineering.