Fair trade

Fair trade is a trade arrangement designed to help producers in developing countries achieve sustainable and equitable conditions. The fair trade movement advocates paying higher prices to exporters and improving social and environmental standards. The movement focuses in particular on commodities, or products that are typically exported from developing countries to developed countries but are also used in domestic markets (e.g., Brazil, the United Kingdom and Bangladesh), most notably for handicrafts, coffee, cocoa, wine, sugar, fruit, flowers and gold. Fair trade labelling organizations commonly use a definition of fair trade developed by FINE, an informal association of four international fair trade organizations: Fairtrade International (formerly called FLO, Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International), World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO), Network of European Worldshops and European Fair Trade Association (EFTA). Fair trade, by this definition, is a trading partnership based on dialogue, transparency and respect, that seeks greater equity in international trade. Fair trade organizations, backed by consumers, support producers, raise awareness and campaign for changes in the rules and practice of conventional international trade. Fair trade certifiers include Fairtrade International, Ecocert, Fair World Project and Fair Trade USA, whose labelling scheme includes independent smallholders and estates for crops. In 2008, Fairtrade International certified approximately (€3.4B) of products. On 6 June 2008, Wales became the world's first Fair Trade Nation; followed by Scotland in February 2013. The fair trade movement is popular in the UK, where there are over 500 Fairtrade towns, 118 universities, over 6,000 churches, and over 4,000 UK schools registered in the Fairtrade Schools Scheme. In 2011, more than 1.2 million farmers and workers in more than 60 countries participated in Fairtrade International's fair trade system, which included €65 million in fairtrade premium paid to producers for use developing their communities. Some criticisms have been raised about fair trade systems, including...