Fair trade

The Fair trade mark is an independent consumer label that appears on products and guarantees disadvantaged producers and workers in developing economies a minimum price that covers the cost of sustainable production. Fair trade also guarantees an extra investment in social and economic development projects. Fair trade also invests in conservation projects for the environment. The FLO inspects and certifies Fair trade products. Thus fair trade offers economically vulnerable producers the opportunity to become stakeholders in the supply chain.

Fair trade offers consumers the knowledge that their consumption is contributing to an ethically based supply base. Fair trade offers responsible business the opportunity to invest in sustainable production and offers a model of a socially responsible supply chain. Fair trade promotes ethically sound employment conditions, no child or slave labour, safe working conditions and adherence to the UN Charter for Human Rights. Fair trade sales have increased dramatically in the past decade as a result, reflecting the market’s growing demand for Corporate Social Responsibility in the supply chain. Global sales of Fair trade labelled products were 1.6 billion euros in 2006, a year-on-year increase of 41%.