Essay from the year 2009 in the subject Business economics - Business Ethics, Corporate Ethics, grade: 1,7, bo Akademi University, language: English, abstract: In this essay I want to discuss the issue of Fair Trade and how Fair Trade can contribute to social justice. First I will give a short definition what Fair Trade actually is and then I will give an overview about the different Fair Trade organisations and define the standards which they follow. Then I will have a look at the producers and also the products which are available. I will analyse their sales statistic and also their market share. Fairtrade is a "trading partnership" which tries to maintain "respect, dialogue, transparency, and increased more fairness in international trade" . Fair Trade tries to better the situation of developing countries by paying a "fair" price for certain products that is higher than the market price. In the last few years, Fairtrade has becoming more and more popular in the industrialized world. The supporter's base is often also engaged in debates with political decision-makers in the European institutions for the purpose of making international trade fairer. Fair Trade is definitely a form of ethical consumption, because as consumption is one aspect of human behaviour that could harm other human beings.

Twenty years ago, Fair Trade started as an effort to enable smallholder producers from developing countries to successfully compete in international markets. Better access to market outlets and stable prices are considered key principles for sustainable poverty reduction and stakeholder participation based on 'trade, not aid'. While Fair Trade is primarily conceived as a trading partnership - based on dialogue, transparency and mutual respect - seeking greater equity in international trade, it relies on an organized social movement promoting standards for production practices and delivery procedures, working conditions and labour remuneration, environmental care and social policies in supply chains of certified tropical goods. Over the past two decades, sales of Fair Trade products have considerably increased. After the first shipments of coffee, the range of products has gradually broadened to include fruit (particularly bananas, pineapple and citrus), tea, cocoa, textiles, cosmetics and a whole series of other products. Global Fair Trade sales have steadily grown to approximately EUR 1.6 billion worldwide, covering almost 600 producer organizations in more than 55 developing countries that represent close to a million families of farmers and workers. In recent years, efforts have been made towards mainstreaming of Fair Trade involving large international companies and retail chains. While numerous case studies and descriptive overviews are available to illustrate the importance of Fair Trade for producers and their families in developing countries, little quantitative evidence has been presented to review the socio-economic impact of Fair Trade. This collection of articles provides the first balanced in-depth analysis of the real welfare impact of Fair Trade, paying attention to key dimensions of income, consumption, wealth, environment, empowerment and gender. The core articles are based on extensive field surveys in Peru, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Ghana, Kenya and Mexico, and provide valuable insights in the contributions and constraints for producers’ involvement in Fair Trade. In addition, attention is paid to the broader implications for international trade regimes and the ethical perspectives on Fair Trade.

Fair trade is a fast-growing alternative market intended to bring better prices and greater social justice to small farmers around the world. But what does a fair-trade label signify? This vivid study of coffee farmers in Mexico offers the first thorough investigation of the social, economic, and environmental benefits of fair trade. Based on extensive research in Zapotec indigenous communities in Oaxaca, Brewing Justice follows the members of the cooperative Michiza, whose organic coffee is sold on the international fair-trade market, and compares them to conventional farming families in the same region. The book carries readers into the lives of coffee-producer households and communities, offering a nuanced analysis of fair trade’s effects on everyday life and the limits of its impact. Brewing Justice paints a clear picture of the dynamics of the fair-trade market and its relationship to the global economy. Drawing on interviews with dozens of fair-trade leaders, the book also explores the movement’s fraught politics, especially the challenges posed by rapid growth and the increased role of transnational corporations. It concludes with recommendations to strengthen and protect the integrity of fair trade. This updated edition includes a substantial new chapter that assesses recent developments in both coffee-growing communities and movement politics, offering a guide to navigating the shifting landscape of fair-trade consumption.

Fair trade critiques the historical inequalities inherent in international trade and seeks to promote social justice by creating alternative networks linking marginalized producers (typically in the global South) with progressive consumers (typically i

Sustainability certification is generally seen as a promising tool to improve environmental, social, and economic activities along global value chains of commodities. Relying on theories of new institutionalism, this book locates sustainability certification programs as forms of private governance in the broader categorical framework of global governance and compares two prominent programs. It studies commonalities and differences of Fairtrade and the Rainforest Alliance on the program level and analyzes their implementation and impacts on the livelihoods of cocoa farmers in Ghana. (Series: New Cologne Cooperative Science / Neue Kolner Genossenschaftswissenschaft - Vol. 8) [Subject: Sustainability Studies, Agricultural Studies, Environmental Studies, Business, African Studies]

The authors critically evaluate the fair trade movement's role in pursuing a more just and environmentally sustainable society. Using fair trade as a case study of the shift toward non-state forms of governance, they focus on its role not only as a regulatory tool, but as a catalyst for broader social and political transformation.