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Fair Trade Kathleen Riley and Christy West
Why Fair Trade? Provides farmers and workers in developing countries with the help
they need to make successful and sustainable businesses to better their community
A major aspect of Fair Trade is that funds are specifically designated for social, economic, and environmental developmental projects such as building businesses, empowering women, supporting education, fighting poverty, and providing health care.
Sets and enforces strict standards and requirements that ensure products are produced under ethical conditions. Some of these conditions include sustainable work ethics, no child labor, and no sweatshop practices
Fair Trade: A Trend The fair trade apparel and accessory trend is affecting many
different cultures, lives, families and countries around the world
Not only is this merchandise morally and physically supporting a good cause, it also falls under the ever growing sustainability trend. Fair trade companies, supporters, and workers all promote and live by doing their part to provide sustainable products and merchandise to consumers.
Fair trade is becoming and is a trend because it also allows consumers to purchase products knowing they are directly impacting the lives and communities of the workers creating the products.
Fair Trade: A Trend Cause Branding
“A potentially profit-making initiative by a for-profit company or brand to raise awareness, money, and/or consumer engagement in a social or environmental issue. Cause branding additionally attempts to create a permanent association between the company or brand and that issue in the eyes of the consumer” (citation).
The cause branding trend has become a very strong trend within retail industry and fair trade is similar to this practice but instead of just raising money for charity fair trade organizations “[…] teach disadvantaged communities how to use the free market to their advantage”(citation).
Fair Trade in the Retail Industry
• Fair Trade pumps money into these developing countries helping to boost their economy’s
• Truly fair traded products offer a sincere sense of originality and exclusiveness many consumers strive for.
• Celebrities, trend setters and designers are jumping on not only the sustainability band wagon, but the fair trade aspect of production as well, making these products popular and in increasing demand.
• The Queen of England has also noticed and recognized the good in fair trade products.
Fair Trade in the Retail Industry
Consumers are beginning to specifically shop for these fair traded items, instead of a style or color coming first, consumers are starting to base their purchasing decisions on the products production history.
Statistically consumers also enjoy the humanity portion of the fair trade process, people in today’s society want to do good and ultimately see positive change through the world.
Even though economically, our society has been in a down turn, that has not stopped designers, retailers, and ultimately consumers from making ethical purchasing decisions.
For example, increasing prices of raw materials has also brought attention and awareness to the fair trade concept.
Discussion Question:
Now that we are rising out of the recent recession and money is starting to flow back into our economy, are you willing to spend
more on merchandise that is fair traded? Does the background of the products you wear
matter to you?
MALI• Mali is one of the 10
poorest countries in the world
• Mali is the largest cotton producer on the African continent
• 40% of Mali’s rural population is dependent on cotton production
• Before the Dougourakoroni Cotton Producers co-operative existed Malian farmers were being forced to sell their cotton crop below production costs because the decreasing worth of cotton per kg
MALI• Mali women
produce hand crafted jewelry for Catholic Relief Services
• Help raise awareness about obstetric fistula to local women.
Bangladesh• Women in
Bangladesh often forced to live in slums and work in factories up to 600 miles away from their families
• Fair trade fights poverty
• Founded in 1991 in Japan by Safia Minney
• Registered and highly involved member of the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO)
• Design garments by hand as much as possible in order to create work in developing countries
• To support producer partners' efforts towards economic independence and control over their environment and to challenge the power structures that undermine their rights to a livelihood.
KENYA
• Cotton sector struggling – production at 8.2% of national capacity
• Farmers producing low yields of poor quality cotton
• Cotton costs rising• Situation particularly
poor in Kitui and Mwingi districts where poverty level is as much as 76%
• Cotton production is one of the few means these farmers have to earn an income to meet basic needs
KENYAFair Trade Cotton project • Links farmers in these
districts to a fair trade supply chain through a local ginnery
• Guaranteed sales mean farmers receive an increased and consistent price
• More than 200% increased income
• Lives of 2,500 farmers and their families improved
Fair Trade in the US
• The United States of America is a developed country, thus to the American society the ideas of giving back to people in need, ethical global business, and sustainability have not only become increasingly popular, but trendy as well.
• Fair traded merchandise and products are one very influential way for consumers to obtain that trend.
• Celebrities and public figures have taken it upon themselves to spread the knowledge on fair trade, and why it was established in the first place, to mainstream consumers.
• Retailers all across America not only began to sell fair traded products, but opened businesses with fair trade as their business foundation.
• Even main stream companies such as Ebay, are beginning to offer fair trade products to fulfill consumer demands.
Theories
• Trickle Down TheoryFair trade clothing
and accessories became trendy because the people at the top of the social ranking became interested
• To indicate desired social conduct
ex: WWJD bracelets
Discussion Questions
• Is it possible to run a Fair Trade company on a large scale?
• How can fair trade become more popular?• Will fair trade eventually reduce poverty?• Do you think fair trade fashion will ever take
over fast fashion?
Reference PageFairTrade. Merriam-webster dictionary. Retrieved April 26, 2011, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fair%20trade.
Definition: cause branding [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://dowelldogood.net/?p=483. What is fair trade?. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.transfairusa.org/what-is-fair-trade
Traub, C. (2010, February 15). Paris trade shows feature wide mix. Women's Wear Daily, Retrieved from http://www.wwd.com/markets-news/mix-of-old-and-new-stirs-paris-trade-shows-3490829
Queen elizabeth ii delivers honors to fashion industry. (2010, December 30). Women's Wear Daily, Retrieved from http://www.wwd.com/fashion-news/fashion-scoops/queen-elizabeth-ii-delivers-honors-to-fashion-industry-3410538
Denton, E. (2010, October 18). Do shoppers care about sustainability?. Women's Wear Daily, Retrieved from http://www.wwd.com/footwear-news/do-shoppers-care-about-sustainability-3340419
Stengel, R. (2009, September 10). Doing well by doing good. Time Magazine, Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1921591,00.html Stephenson, L.B. (2010, October 11). Rising price of gold forces jewelers to adjust. Women's Wear Daily, Retrieved from http://www.wwd.com/markets-news/gold-prices-rise-and-jewelers-adjust-3333905#/article/markets-news/gold-prices-rise-and-jewelers-adjust-3333905?page=2
Fair Trade USA. (n.d.). Apparel & Linens. Retrieved March 8, 2011, from Fair Trade USA: http://fairtradeimpact.org/
Fairtrade Foundation. (2006). Dougourakoroni Cotton Producers Co-operative, Mali. Retrieved March 8, 2011, from Fairtrade Foundation: http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/producers/cotton/dougourakoroni_cotton_producers.aspx
People Tree. (n.d.). About People Tree. Retrieved April 26, 2011 , from People Tree: http://www.peopletree.co.uk/about-us/
Traidcraft. (2011). Fairtrade Cotton, Kenya. Retrieved April 26, 2011, from Tradecraft: http://www.traidcraft.co.uk/international_development/overseas_programmes/east_africa/fairtrade_cotton_kenya