Filed under: All About Coffee, Fair Trade | Tags: coffee, Fair Trade, organic
If organic products are the next big thing, Fair Trade is the next/next thing. And that is a good thing. Fair Trade really means fair. And right. Fair Trade is a partnership based on mutual respect between producers and buyers. It provides fair wages and humane working conditions for coffee farmers. It polices child labor and also supports transparency in business and accounting practices.
- Fair Trade = environmental protections. Most Fair Trade coffee is also organic, grown using sustainable farming practices. Fair Trade actively promotes methods that improve soil fertility while protecting the ecosystem. Harmful agrochemicals are limited, resulting in coffee that is safer for the farmers to grow … and safer for you to drink.
- Fair Trade provides gender equality in the workplace. Despite the gender equality strides that have taken place in America and many other countries, gender equality and fairness is sadly not the standard in many developing nations. Fair Trade supports equal pay for equal work by coffee-producing men and women.
- FairTrade protects against unfair child labor practices. Children who participate in coffee production are assured security, well being, and educational and recreational requirements in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Protecting children is a crucial piece of the Fair Trade puzzle, and one worth remembering.
- Fair Trade supports communities. Working through cooperative organizations, Fair Trade coffee farmers are able to invest their earnings in improving housing, health care, and schools.
- Fair Trade helps sustain local economies. Fair Trade coffee farmers can build their own businesses, rather than work for commercial go-betweens – where they earn significantly less money. What is more, Fair Trade profits stay in the farmers’ own community.
So: ready to buy Fair Trade? Look for the logo, and remember that you have a choice. For about what you are paying now, choosing Fair Trade Certified coffee supports sustainable development for small farmers in developing nations.
Cheers!
Did you know that THOUSANDS of children are sold into forced labor in developing countries every year?
The children face backbreaking, dangerous work – including having to use razor-sharp machetes at age 9 or younger. But when you choose Fair Trade coffee, chocolate, sugar and other items harvested in developing countries – you are taking a stand against child labor.
Insist on the Fair Trade designation. It ensures that no child labor was used, and it is the right thing to do.
Filed under: Fair Trade
Is Fair Trade Certification a Scam?
QUESTION:
I keep hearing more and more about Fair Trade certification, especially when it comes to coffee. What does Fair Trade mean, exactly? Is is a scam?
EMERALD FROG’S ANSWER:
Yes: Fair Trade is a real, important designation. No, it is not a scam.
According to Wikipedia:
“Fair Trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach that aims to help producers in developing countries and promote sustainability … Fair Trade’s strategic intent is to work with marginalized producers and workers in order to help them move towards economic self-sufficiency and stability. ”
In short: Fair Trade means FAIR. Specifically, fair to the farmers in developing nations. It is the right thing to do, and the ONLY kind of coffee carried by Emerald Frog.
www.emeraldfrog.com
