Is Fair Trade Fair?

I feel the point of the question has been missed. Fair Trade is not meant as a means to handicap the farmer with additional labor or keep human capital in the fields. These criticisms miss the point and minimize the social benefits that Fair Trade practices have provided to so many poor third world farmers.

Fair trade stands for a market based approach that helps to create a better work standard while promoting sustainability for those producers of goods in developing countries. The Fair Trade movement advocates the payment of higher prices to those producers. It focuses on exports from developing countries to developed countries. Products included are handicrafts, coffee, cocoa, sugar, tea, bananas amongst In 2008, products certified with FLO International's Fair Trade certification
amounted to approximately US$5.8BB worldwide in 2 Although, this is a small fraction of the total world trade, it is significant when you consider that  fair trade products now account for 20-50% of all sales in their product categories in some individual  countries.

I think it is safe to say that Fair Trade is not only Fair but is a rather impressive scale of accomplishments for a Global NGO that collaborates with a myriad of countries, governments, cultures, farmers, consumers and multi national business enterprises. The accomplishments of Fair Trade practices to date far out way these problems raised and have helped improve the lives and the environments that lie beyond the scope and capabilities of most third world governments and their citizens.

Like any social movement, Fair Trade has its detractors from all points on the political and social spectrum. Some feel it is a subsidy that impedes economic growth, others feel it is a tax on consumers and raises prices while others see it as a form of green washing for global brands. In all these cases they are probably right in some respect because there will always be companies that do not align their CSR activities to improve social welfare while meeting their strategic objectives. Instead, they see Fair-Trade as a means to meet their economic objectives with no interest in long term social effectiveness, resulting in Fair Trade that is not Fair.

Last week, Fair Trade USA, the movement’s leading advocate in the United States,
announced that it would cut its ties at the end of this year with the international fair trade group. It is their intent to make far-reaching changes in the sorts of products that get the Fair Trade USA seal of approval. These changes include giving the fair trade designation to coffee from large plantations, which were previously barred in favor of small farmers. They are also proposing to place their seal on products with as little as 10 percent fair trade ingredients, compared with a minimum of 20 percent required in now globally. The group says the changes will benefit more poor farmers and farm workers around the world and make it easier for large corporations to sell fair trade products.

Most fair trade programs around the world already allow bananas, tea and flowers to be grown on large farms. But traditionally, fair trade coffee and cocoa has come from small farms organized into cooperatives. These farmers once were isolated from the markets in the developed world but now receive a premium for their crops. Fair trade organizations have helped them improve product quality and, most important, give them access to a world market.

Do you think the changes planned by Fair Trade USA are fair, and if so fair to which stakeholders?

A. Large Multi National corporations

B. The farmers

C. The End Consumers

D. The Local Governments

E. Fair Trade USA

F. Fair Trade International

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_trade

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/24/business/as-fair-trade-movement-grows-a-dispute-over-its-direction.html?emc=eta1&pagewanted=all