Social Justice through Fair Trade: World Fair Trade Day May 9, 2009
Fair trade empowers small farmers in developing countries by getting them organized and developing their business skills, which allows them access to the world market. Selling directly from small producers to global markets through Fair Trade increases their revenues by 2-4 times. The desperately needed revenues enable these farmers to develop their communities through modernizing infrastructure, adding water wells and lighting, making education available for students of all ages, and can even be made into scholarships, among many other developments. Fair trade has high labor and income standards with strict environmental guidelines. It promises fair prices for farmers, fair wages for workers, safe working conditions, direct market access, sustainable farming methods, community development, environmental protection, and democratic decision making. Taking care of the farming land and environment leaves them sustainable for future generations.
Around five million farmers, workers, family and community members from fifty countries benefit from Fair Trade. Fair Trade provides equality in the process of globalization, where as through free trade the inequalities between large businesses and small farmers are allowed to continually increase. With Fair Trade, businesses on both ends benefit, but especially the small farmers and communities of developing countries.
Fair Trade has made a difference in the lives of Nicaraguans. For example, an extremely poor coffee farmer in Nicaragua with two acres of farmland sells his coffee to the local coyotes for a pitiful 60 cents per pound. Due to the extremely low price he receives for his coffee, his children are unable to attend school at all. This is an example of a typical Nicaraguan “free trade” coffee farmer and is greatly in contrast with a farmer who sells his coffee through Fair Trade. For example, Fair Trade coops that are set up in Nicaragua have farmers who experience a much better quality of life, can afford to pay for their children to attend and graduate high school, can create scholarship funds, and have children in the community attend college through these funds, as well as many other community benefits. The small farmers who are Fair Trade certified have obvious advantages compared to those small farmers that use coyotes and free trade.
If you don’t believe the great benefits of Fair Trade I have told you, listen to a few other informed people who also support Fair Trade in these personal interviews.
Please view these photos of marginalized and disadvantaged people around the world and choose to support Fair Trade, because they deserve to be lifted out of poverty through their hard work with fair wages. As a consumer, you have the power and obligation to consume products so that everyone benefits equally and supporting Fair Trade products is the best option for doing this.
World Fair Trade Day is May 9th, 2009 and I encourage all of those who support Fair Trade to engage in a fair trade event, spread the word about Fair Trade, and/or purchase Fair Trade products. A few events I found for celebration of World Fair Trade Day are listed:
- SPOKANE: WHEN: Saturday May 9, 2009 at 10AM-5PM WHERE: The Community Building, 35 West Main st. Spokane, WA WHAT: World Fair Trade event – We’ll have 2 Fair Trade Coffee Breaks, A fair trade drumming circle and 10 local Fair Trade vendors selling beautiful goods from around the world. The kids can enjoy a traditional Chilean carnival game. We’ll have a Mayan weaver demonstrating her weaving, lots of Fair Trade artisan stories and even some door prizes. Join us for a great event! Let’s make Spokane’s World Fair Trade Day a huge celebration! For more information contact Denise at Ganesh Himal Trading 509-448-6561. Thanks!
- TACOMA: WHEN: Saturday May 9, 2009 at 11:00AM WHERE: 208 Garfield St., Suite 101 Tacoma, WA 98444 United States WHAT: World Fair Trade Day Celebration & Sale - Contact: valdezka@gbc.plu.edu. Event sponsored by Pacific Lutheran University.
- SEATTLE: WHEN: Saturday May 9, 2009 at 7:00 PM WHERE: 12729 Lake City Way NE Seattle, WA 98125 WHAT: Saturday Night Live Fair Trade Jam – We will honor ‘first hands’ with our hands, drums, hearts and spirit. Jamtown is the only exclusively fair trade music instrument dealer in the world. (I think!) Rock it with instruments, voice, spirit, and crazy ideas to keep it fun, deep, and refreshing. Contact: John Hayden jamtown@hotmail.com Organization: Jamtown World Music
BIG BANG STOMP!! HERE COMES WORLD FAIR TRADE DAY 9th MAY, 2009
For more information on World Fair Trade Day, read the article BIG BANG!! DAWN RISES ON A SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY by Paul Myers, the President of the World Fair Trade Organization.
Thanks for your support against slavery, poverty, and unfair wages: Thanks for your support in Fair Trade.
Please leave a comment!
Add a comment May 6, 2009
Resource Guide
Please enjoy a list of resources that are all about Fair Trade.
o This website gives information about Fairtrade certification and the Fairtrade Mark, Fairtrade history, Facts and Figures, Annual Reports, and even jobs and volunteering availablilities. It also gives a definition for who the Fairtrade Foundation is and what it does.
o This website is about Transfair USA and gives options to buy, organize, or donate for Fairtrade in order to get involved. It also offers recent news and announcements about Fair Trade in the USA, and gives information about what Fair Trade is and does.
o This website is all about Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO). It gives information about the organization that develops and reviews Fairtrade standards and is involved with Fairtrade certification.
o This website gives out the latest Fairtrade news and an events calendar. It offers ways to get involved with Fairtrade through their showcased events.
o This website is for the Fair Trade Federation (FTF), which is the trade association promoting North American organizations that are committed to Fair Trade. It has a Fair Trade spotlight and Fair Trade events on display and also offers ways to get involved, find Fair Trade members, and explore facts, figures, and myths of Fair Trade.
o This website shows an article with an argument by the Adam Smith Institute against Fair Trade because it is “unfair.” The Adam Smith Institute says “fair trade offers a better deal to some producers at the expense of the great majority of farmers.” Also see this website.
o This website is about People for Fair Trade (PFFT). It is a volunteer network of people in Australia who are committed to Fair Trade. This website gives useful information, for example, how much of the consumer’s money actually goes to the people in the country where the product is grown.
o This website focuses on the Fair Trade of Coffee. It supports Fair Trade and gives information about the coffee industry and how the US is involved.
o This website is all about Fair Trade for sports products, such as soccer balls, footballs, basketballs, etc. The website offers an abundance of information on going green and fair trade having to do with sports products.
o This is a website that sells all different kinds of practical household products, all of which are Fair Trade certified. The wide range of products are anywhere from stylish furniture and photo frames, to cushions and rugs, to dining sets and fluffy white dressing gowns.
o This website offers a database for finding Fair Trade suppliers so that specific products and information on companies and organizations can be searched. The search is made with the three categories: location, product, and supplier.
o This is an American Coop website that gives information on Fair trade products like sugar, chocolate, rice, olive oils, tea, vanilla, wine, crafts, etc. It also can help you find a local store to buy these products at.
o This website is designed to allow consumers, retailers and manufacturers interaction and also creates an easy way to find products, services and source materials. It is an advocate for sustainable/green/organic products.
o This website lists tons of Facts about Fair Trade and it’s products, ranging from statistics to sales. Another website gives all the recent numbers for Fair Trade statistics.
o This website weighs the “good intentions” of Fair Trade with the negative byproducts. The focus in this article is whether fairness and market forces are able to co-exist.
1 comment April 3, 2009
How “Fair” is Fair Trade?
Despite the benefits that Fair Trade gives to producers around the world, there are several arguments against Fair Trade.
To begin, the article “Fair trade is unfair” argues that “a very small number of farmers are getting a subsidised fixed price for their produce under Fairtrade franchises, and that this is at the expense of most other farmers in their regions, who are actually worse off as a result” and “the Fairtrade operation helps keep poor countries and undeveloped economies exactly that — poor and undeveloped.” The article’s solution for the development of these countries out of poverty is through free trade and not through Fairtrade. Although this article brings up some good points, Fair Trade was not made to be the answer to poverty in underdeveloped countries or to all the problems in world trade; it was created to prompt companies, individuals, and everyone ”to do something to make the world fairer,” a quote from the Executive Director of the Fairtrade Foundation. It may be true that the prices for products from Fair Trade farmers might negatively impact other farmers in the same region, but those other farmers have the option to be Fair Trade certified themselves or to find a different occupation, perhaps a more ”modern economic activity”(proposed by the article) that they can benefit from.
Another problem with Fair Trade posed in our own Daily Evergreen in the article “Fair Trade Isn’t Fair for All along Production Line” deals with the fact that distributors are required to pay a 10 cent premium on the Fair Trade price. The article claims that “higher prices attract farmers to stay in an unsustainable system.” Therefore, if coffee is unsustainable at the current price, the producers will be unable to sell all of their products because at higher prices, the demand for the Fair Trade coffee is lower. However, I do not completely agree with the article because the purpose of Fair Trade is so that individual consumers can contribute to the fair prices received by the producers for their goods. Even though the Fair Trade prices are 10+ cents higher than others, in my opinion, the conscious consumer will buy the more expensive product in support of small-time producers receiving a fair price.
There is also a claim in “Fair Trade Isn’t Fair for All along Production Line” that the middlemen are still a problem in Fair Trade, even though the Fair Trade Organization works to eliminate the middlemen as much as possible. It is understandable that some middlemen are still present as it is impossible for the small-time producer to practice vertical integration (as the writer of the article proposes) and own the whole trade route and not have portions of his profit taken along the way. It would be very inefficient for one man to produce and transport goods from one country to the next, therefore the Fair Trade Organization steps in and does their part instead to reduce the amount of hands the goods are passed through, increasing the return of profit to the producer.
Another article, “Fair-trade coffee: not worth a hill of beans”, argues that Fair Trade ignores the laws of supply and demand. For example, although there are a multitude of coffee producers, higher prices paid to fair traders “send a signal to people in developing countries to join an already overcrowded field. “ Because they all flock to a single cash crop, it is thought to be keeping people in these countries from pursuing other lucrative jobs that would contribute to diversity and growth of the countries and to not being dependent on that single cash crop. I think that this problem could be solved by an outside source helping to implement and encourage a new or pre-existing line of work that would benefit the country, perhaps the above-mentioned “modern economic activity.” Also, since the number of Fair Trade Certified products are increasing, people of the developing countries could try to find other Fair Trade products to produce.
This article brings up again that the demand for a crop such as coffee would go down with the increase in price of Fair Trade coffee. However, I have worked around coffee for years and I know that most customers will pay whatever price they have to to get their daily fix of coffee. In general, I noticed the same thing when the gas prices increased. People still have to drive to work, so they are going to pay the outrageous prices for gas. Similarly, the addictive quality of caffeine in coffee will keep consumers coming back, which is also similar to the skyrocketed price of cigarettes with addictive nicotine that their consumers will continue paying for. Once again, I would hope that the coffee consumers would happily pay a slightly higher price to increase fair wages for the coffee producers.
I hope to have addressed some of the major points of conflict with Fair Trade, and perhaps if my defense of Fair Trade has not been convincing, there are other good points and bad points made about Fair Trade to be found in the article “Points of view: How fair is Fairtrade?” This article has a variety of quotes by people directly involved with Fair Trade and they give their insights on some of the problems and benefits of Fair Trade. Overall, I believe Fair Trade to be a good effort by the organization towards it’s purpose of uniting companies and consumers to support fair prices for farmers/producers, even though it may still need to work out a few kinks. Once again, it was not designed to solve all of the problems of world trade, but I would like to think that Fair Trade is helping in the ways that it can.
Add a comment March 24, 2009
History of Fair Trade
Beginning somewhere in the fifties, the concept of Fair Trade first existed as a partnership between non-profit importers, retailers in the North, and small-scale producers in developing countries. These producers facing low market prices used Fair Trade to escape their high dependence on the middlemen, allowing direct access to Northern markets. Such original forms of Fair Trade existed as Alternative Trade Organizations (ATOs) that were created in different countries and were commonly associated with volunteer groups and Worldshops.
In 1988, Fair Trade sales were first sought out to be increased by the efforts of the Dutch ATO, Solidaridad, when the organization created the “Max Havelaar” label on goods, which ensured that labor and environmental standards were met. Within years after Solidaridad’s success, labelling of Fair Trade products was mimicked by ATOs in Europe and North America, such as “Max Havelaar” (in Belgium, Switzerland, Denmark, Norway and France), “Transfair” (in Germany, Austria, Luxemburg, Italy, the United States, Canada and Japan), “Fairtrade Mark” (in the UK and Ireland), “Rättvisemärkt” (in Sweden), and “Reilu Kauppa” (in Finland).
Each organization operated independently having their own separate campaigns and certification marks up until 1997, when Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO) was established in Bonn, Germany in order to unite the organizations and establish worldwide standards and certfication.
In 2002, FLO implemented a new international Fairtrade Certification Mark in order to improve the visibility of Fair Trade products on supermarket shelves, to communicate a vibrant and unified image of Fair Trade, and to simplify cross-border trade and procedures for importers and traders. The Fairtrade Certification Mark also symbolizes fairness in global relationships and global standards of Fair Trade.
In 2004, FLO was divided into FLO International and FLO-CERT, each functioning as an independent organization. FLO International became in charge of setting Fair Trade standards and dealing with producer business support, while FLO-CERT was delegated for inspection and certification of producer organizations and auditing traders.
The Fairtrade Certification Mark has been implemented in all but three “Labelling Initiatives” (Transfair USA, TransFair Canada and Max Havelaar Switzerland) as of 2006. It is only a matter of time before the Fairtrade Certification Mark will be adopted by all initiatives and there are less inconsistencies in the initiatives of FLO. By 2007, with the additions of Mexico and Australia/New Zealand, there were a total of 21 Labelling Initiatives as members of FLO, according to Fairtrade Labelling International History.
Currently, there are a large variety of products holding Fairtrade Certification Marks. Based on FLO’s certification records, this includes coffee, tea, rice, bananas, mangoes, cocoa, cotton, sugar, honey, fruit juices, nuts, fresh fruit, quinoa, herbs and spices, wine and footballs etc.
The purpose of FLO is to help farmers and workers in developing countries experience better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability, and trading in fair terms. This will help enable marginalized workers and producers to move into an economically self-sufficient position, empowering them in local and international trade markets. Fair Trade initiatives, united and developed by FLO, are also necessary in this unequal world because without them, slavery and unsustainable wages might occur at higher rates. If we all support Fair Trade products, we can help the less fortunate producers and workers around the developing world.
4 comments February 28, 2009
Fair Trade: Chocolate and Slavery
Many people do not realize in this day and age that slavery still exists around the world. But the children in the Ivory Coast and throughout West Africa have been experiencing it for years. The Ivory Coast is the top producer and exporter of cacao beans (used to make chocolate) in the world, with many European countries and the United States bringing high demands to import them. However, a declining economy has driven cacao plantation owners to buy slave children that are trafficked by slave traders.
There are an estimated 15,000 enslaved children being forced to work in the Ivory Coast alone. In extreme poverty, children from Mali are often targeted by slave traders and are given a false hope of working for honest wages at cocoa plants that they would later bring back to help sustain the life of their families. Instead, they are taken to places like the Ivory Coast where cacao plantations are numerous and are bought as slaves from the traders, where they will work without pay.
In many cases the conditions are inconceivable. These children, often boys ages 12-16, are forced to work over 12 hours a day as slaves harvesting cocoa beans and are beaten when they falter due to the heavy loads. The little food the slave children receive would not be considered edible by the standards of people in the US or any other developed country. After work hours, they are confined to a small room, with no bathroom/area, in which they share with almost 20 other people, locked in to prevent escape from the cacao farm. Chocolate and Slavery has more details on these occurances of slave trade from Mali to the Ivory Coast.
The cacao trade has had horrible effects on the children who are lured into slavery and the plantation owners themselves have also suffered unfair prices. To decrease these effects, the Fair Trade organization has created a direct trade route between the cacao farmers and the buyers. Cacao plantations that are Fair Trade Certified receive fair prices for harvests, have access to credit, and are inspected to be sure that prohibition of slavery and standards are kept. Fair Trade has helped the situation in West Africa, as well as around the world where other products are unfairly traded. Retail locations in the U.S. are active in selling Fair Trade products, such as Safeway, Tully’s, and many whole-foods stores.
We can all help to reduce child slavery and unfair wages worldwide by supporting Fair Trade products instead of those products with ambiguous origins. Also, buying organic chocolate and other products will have less of an impact on the environment and personal health since the cacao beans are shade grown (do not contribute to deforestation) and are not sprayed with pesticides. Fair Trade and organic products often coincide and both are routinely inspected in order to maintain their certification, so one can feel good about buying these products versus those that harm personal and worldwide health and the environment. Facts About Chocolate might further convince you to support organic and Fair Trade products.
2 comments January 26, 2009
Consumption and Disposability
After taking note of everything I consumed for a week, I realized how huge of an impact I am making on our earth and the lives of the less fortunate. I went through my daily routines without a second thought about how much water, electricity, food, and other resources I wasted. I washed and dried three loads of laundry, when I easily could have invested in some kind of clothesline to save a portion of the energy. I went grocery shopping, and with respect to my budget, pretty much grabbed anything and everything that I wanted without considering whether the products are recyclable or the process each item went through to be harvested, processed, compiled, packaged, and shipped to the store. My birthday was Friday, so my mom sent me a new cell phone for my present. Most of us don’t realize how lucky we are to have access to such things. On my cell phone, one of the main screen options is the button that takes you to “Get Stuff.” I laughed to myself, realizing how much the government and corporations urge you (often subliminally) to consume. Now, as I am writing this, my heater is running, the TV is on in the background, my laptop is being charged, the room I am in is well lit at 9 PM, and the commercials on the TV are advertising all sorts of things to consume (food, clothes, jewelry, beauty products, electronics, etc.).
But, the reality is, most people in the developed West are oblivious to how they contribute to the destruction of the planet, feed the consumer driven economy, and in turn contribute to slavery and “disposability” in the people of underdeveloped countries that extract and produce our goods. Even television shows like “Rob and Big” and “Viva la Bam” show wealthy and famous consumers who, for example, throw thousand dollar couches off balconies for no apparent reason, and chainsaw holes through hundred thousand dollar sports cars. What will they do next? Most likely throw the used goods away and buy new ones. One can only hope they are recycled in some way. However, most citizens of the US consume and dispose of goods in this way, including myself, but not so extravagantly. I do recycle when it’s convenient, I don’t buy plastic water bottles, I walk to class, and I try to use electricity/water sparingly, but there are many aspects of my personal life that need to tighten up if I am going to make a difference in the struggle of disposability.
I do believe that awareness needs to increase among the US consumers and that drastic measures should be taken by the government to enforce recycling, producing more recyclable versus non-recyclable products, reusable energy, etc. The question is, where does an individual start? Self-improvement is a given, but I think that if each of us convince a few of our closest friends to make an effort towards sustainability, that is a start. From there, we should unite in our communities to “Go Green” and even find ways to help those around the world that are “disposable,” as many of us don’t realize that human beings like us, even women and children, work as slaves or for extremely poor wages to produce the goods that we consume. Among these goods are items such as diamonds, coffee, chocolate, precious metals, cotton/clothes, and the list goes on. As consumers, all of us have their blood on our hands; therefore we all have the obligation to do something about it.
1 comment January 20, 2009
