What does Fair Trade mean?
Fair trade is both a social and market based “movement” that is to empower producers of certain products, particularly those of developing countries and promotes sustainability. This movement began around 1948 through many community, church and charitable organizations. As it has grown fair trade has also moved into supermarkets and shops. The basic principals include: – The encouragement of sustainable production techniques for these goods – Forced or exploited child labor practices are not permitted – Equal opportunity employment – Producers receive a fair price and for some farmers a sustained minimum price. – Healthy and safe working conditions – Access to financial and technical assistance – Sustainable production techniques are encouraged – Direct long term relationships – All aspects of trade and production are open to public accountability The movement not only advocates social and environmental standards for growing and exporting these goods; but also fair and healthy work con
Blue State Coffee has a firm commitment to improving the lives and working conditions of those who grow our coffee. That’s why we only offer Fair Trade coffee, certified by TransFair USA. Our partnership with TransFair USA ensures that our Fair Trade beans are produced by democratic worker cooperatives, and that these growers receive a good price for their harvest.
Fair Trade is an alternative approach to conventional international trade. It is a partnership between producers and traders, which aims at sustainable development for excluded and disadvantaged people in developing countries. On a personal level Fair Trade enables people to put food on their tables, to live and work with dignity and develop their communities. On a global level Fair Trade has the potential to alleviate poverty by changing the unfair structures of world trade and campaign for sustainability.
The answer might seem like a no-brainer. But it’s actually challenging to define without generalizing. According to the Fair Trade Federation, fair trade is “a more equitable and sustainable system of production and trade.” Wikipedia defines fair trade as “an organized social movement which promotes standards for international labor, environmentalism, and social policy in areas related to production of Fairtrade labeled and unlabeled goods.” The fair trade movement focuses in particular on exports from developing countries into developed countries. In plain language, the fair trade movement promotes and supports wages that are fair in the local context, meaning they help artisans and crafts people earn a wage they can live on and that is relative to other skills and trades in their local economic system. Fair trade organizations benefit artisans they trade with by paying between 15 percent and 30 percent of the retail price of products to the artisans. Fair trade also sometimes include
