When Cupid turned blind eye: Darker side of Valentine's day

While most lovers fall even more in love with each other with the oncoming Valentine's day celebration, there are others too who drown themselves in the sorrow of love taken by expiration. Victims of broken relationships still weep over the failed attempt of reconciliation. Lovers scorned over their cheating partners still venge for revenge. Cheating partners now consumed with guilt, try their best to make amends. And the worst is those poor souls whose partners have left them to alone in this world...

And all I see on facebook these days?
-- "I luff eww baby boo."
-- "I miz eww."

No, I do not have any personal vendetta against these young lovers, who fell in love with each other probably with first glance over their emo profile pictures (I'm guessing). I mean whatever sails their boat,  if they're happy then who am I to judge. *insert smiley face*

What I want to bring to light is the darker side of Valentine's day.
Chocolates and flowers.
Can you imagine a Valentine's day without chocolates and flowers? Your girlfriend will probably flip out on you when you go home empty handed without the much awaited flowers and chocolates which them makes go "Awwww! Baby you didn't have to!". But which she anyways ends up eating the whole box.

But as you make your Valentine’s Day purchases this year in the hopes that your gifts will make loved ones happy, you must also consider the human consequences of these spending decisions.

"Flower workers routinely face labor violations in a push to meet the demands of Valentine's day. Most of these workers suffer from work-related health problems, including headaches, nausea, impaired vision, conjunctivitis, rashes, asthma, stillbirths, miscarriages, congenital malformations, and respiratory and neurological problems. These problems, especially those associated with birth defects, are primarily attributed to the chemicals that workers are exposed to while on the job.
Most of the pesticides used in flower production are known carcinogens or toxins that have been either restricted or prohibited. 

And thousands of miles away in West Africa, similar abuses are occurring on cocoa plantations, where 70% of cocoa, the main ingredient in Valentine’s Day chocolate, is grown.

However, in addition to all of the health risks associated with growing and harvesting cocoa, these problems are concentrated among thousands of children who work in cocoa fields every day. Children as young as 5 and 6 years old are required to perform dangerous tasks on cocoa fields, such as chopping down cocoa pods with machetes, breaking the pods open with knives, carrying heavy loads of cocoa beans, and spraying dangerous chemicals such as pesticides, herbicides, and insecticides. These hazardous activities have resulted in injuries and an inability to attend school."

But then again how do you not purchase these key ingredients which makes your Valentine's day special?
One option is to opt for products that have been certified to promote worker rights and protections. But how far will you go to search for those products which sets standards for worker rights, water conservation, recycling, and organic production?