Fairtrade FAQs
What is Fairtrade?
What is the FAIRTRADE Mark?
Why should I buy Fairtrade?
Where can I buy Fairtrade products?
How can I buy Fairtrade products on a student budget?
Why does Fairtrade produce sometime cost more than similar, non-Fairtrade produce?
What is the Fairtrade Premium for?
What is a Fairtrade Town (or School, University, Faith Group)?
What is a Fairtrade certified producer group?
How many Fairtrade products in the UK are there?
How big is the UK Fairtrade market?
What product categories does Fairtrade certify?
My local shop, supermarket or café doesn’t offer Fairtrade products. What can I do?
How much of the price we pay for Fairtrade products goes back to the producers?
Is buying Fairtrade products a good idea, given concerns on climate change?
Can buying Fairtrade products help to tackle climate change?
What is Fairtrade?
Fairtrade is about better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability, and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world. By requiring companies to pay sustainable prices, Fairtrade addresses the injustices of conventional trade, which traditionally discriminates against the poorest, weakest producers. It enables them to improve their position and have more control over their lives.
What is the FAIRTRADE Mark?
The FAIRTRADE Mark is an independent consumer label which appears on UK products as a guarantee that they have been certified against internationally agreed Fairtrade standards. The Mark indicates that the product has been certified to give a better deal to the producers involved – it does not act as an endorsement of an entire company’s business practices.
Why should I buy Fairtrade?
Buying Fairtrade is about making an informed choice. Choosing to buy Fairtrade produce means that you are giving hardworking communities in developing countries the opportunity to earn a fair living. You are also supporting environmentally friendly methods of production.
Where can I buy Fairtrade products?
They are available in major supermarkets, independent shops, in cafés, restaurants, through catering suppliers and wholesales, as well as through online shopping channels. Also check out shops that are part of BAFTS (British Association of Fair Trade Shops) which often have product ranges not available in mainstream stores.
How can I buy Fairtrade products on a student budget?
Many large retailers now have own-brand Fairtrade certified products on their shelves. These products often compete on price with popular brands of non-Fairtrade certified products, and in many cases they are less expensive. The key to buying Fairtrade on a student budget is savvy shopping, and don’t forget – Look for the Logo
Why does Fairtrade produce sometimes cost more than similar, non-Fairtrade produce?
This is because we ensure that our Fairtrade producers, disadvantaged people living in developing countries, are guaranteed a minimum price for their produce. This constitutes a fair living wage. Produce bought above the minimum price creates the Fairtrade Premium.
What is the Fairtrade Premium for?
The Fairtrade Premium is invested in social, environmental and economic development projects, decided upon democratically by a committee of producers within the organisation or workers on a plantation.
What is a FairtradeTown (or School, University, Faith Group)?
The Foundation does not certify towns or other groups, only products. However, we do run campaigns with local community groups aimed at boosting awareness and understanding of trade issues, and promoting the purchase of Fairtrade products as a way that ordinary people can make a difference to the lives of producers. A Fairtrade-certified University has to fulfill five goals, which incorporate making Fairtrade products available to students and staff, running regular events and campaigns, and having a policy and steering group to drive forward change on campus.
What is a Fairtrade certified producer group?
This term is used for either an association of farmers or a company dependent on hired labour that produces one or more commodities for which there are Fairtrade standards and that has been certified to meet those standards. Once certified, they are added to the Fairtrade product register and registered companies can buy from them under Fairtrade terms.
How many Fairtrade products in the UK are there?
The Fairtrade Foundation has licensed over 3,000 Fairtrade certified products for sale through retail and catering outlets in the UK.
How big is the UK Fairtrade market?
The UK market is doubling in value every 2 years, and in 2007 reached an estimated retail value of £493 million. The UK is one of the world’s leading Fairtrade markets, with more products and more awareness of Fairtrade than anywhere else. Around 20% of roast and ground coffee, and 20% of bananas sold in the UK are now Fairtrade.
What product categories does Fairtrade certify?
Internationally-agreed Fairtrade generic criteria exist for the following commodity products and in each category there is a list of approved producers maintained by a FLO register.
Food products: Bananas; Cocoa; Coffee; Dried Fruit; Fresh Fruit & Fresh Vegetables; Honey; Juices; Nuts/Oil & Seeds/Oil; Quinoa; Rice; Spices; Sugar; Tea; and Wine.
Non-food products: Beauty products; Cotton; Cut Flowers; Ornamental Plants; Gold; and Sports Balls.
My local shop, supermarket or café doesn’t offer Fairtrade products. What can I do?
Speak to the manager about stocking Fairtrade. Give them a leaflet about Fairtrade.
How much of the price we pay for Fairtrade products goes back to the producers?
The Fairtrade price applies at the point where the producer organisation sells to the next person in the supply chain (usually an exporter or importer). It is not calculated as a proportion of the final retail price, which is negotiated between the product manufacturer and the retailer.
Is buying Fairtrade products a good idea, given concerns on climate change?
If the debate around climate change becomes overly obsessed with the question of food miles, this could severely damage opportunities for sustainable forms of export agriculture to contribute to the economic and social development of poor producers.
While an international consensus has been reached on the science of climate change, what is now needed is a balanced debate on the best way forward to reduce the impact of climate change whilst also supporting developing countries in tackling poverty and promoting sustainable development.
Can buying Fairtrade products help to tackle climate change?
The Fairtrade system includes environmental standards as part of producer certification. The standard requires producers to work to protect the natural environment and make environmental protection a part of farm management. The Fairtrade premium can enable farmers to implement a range of environmental protection programmes which will contribute to the solutions needed to tackle climate change.
Adapted from: The Fairtrade Foundation's FAQs.
Insight
Resources
