Fair
Trade certification is a market-based model of international trade that
benefits over one million farmers and farm workers in 58 developing countries
across Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Fair Trade
is sometimes used interchangeably with Ethical Trading, they are distinct from
one another.
Ethical
Trading means companies are involved in a process of ensuring that the basic
labor rights of the employees of their third world suppliers are respected.
The FAIRTRADE Mark, applies to products rather than companies.
The FAIRTRADE
Mark; Core Standards and practice behind the Five Guarantees;
- · Guarantees farmers a fair and stable price for their products.
- · Extra income for farmers and estate workers to improve their lives.
- · A greater respect for the environment.
- · Small farmers a stronger position in world markets.
- · Closer link between consumers and producers.
Roots of Fair Trade
can
be traced back to projects initiated by churches in North America and Europe in
the late 1940s. Their goal was to provide relief to refugees and other poverty
stricken communities by selling their handicrafts to Northern markets. Alternative
Trade Organizations (ATOs) offered higher returns to producers in the
developing world through direct trade and fair prices. In the US, ATOs such as
Ten Thousand Villages and Equal
Exchange, are worker owned co-operatives, formed to import Fair Trade crafts and coffee
to the US market.
In 1988, world coffee prices began a sharp descent, triggering the birth of the first Fair Trade certification initiative.. The Netherland's Max Havelaar label offered mainstream coffee industry players the opportunity to adopt a standardized system of Fair Trade criteria.
Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO) is the 'umbrella organization' that establishes Fair Trade standards, globally for the industry using a multi-stakeholder process involving producers, workers, mission-based companies, conventional traders and third party certification labeling Initiatives like TransFair USA.
Currently The
United Nations “Least Developed” Countries are the only countries eligible for
Fairtrade certification.
Watch Fair Trade
the MOVIE here.
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