Webwatch looks at fair trade practices.
We hear a lot about fair trade products these days, but there is sometimes confusion about what this means and what such products are. If you have ever partcipated in a local church mission fair or in the Women Ministries Triennial Marketplace, you have participated in a fair trade exchange.
The term is used to define the fair wage paid to those who make the products that are sold to consumers. Instead of paying a middle man or barely paying those who manufacture the goods, fair traders typically work directly with artisans or farmers. They provide a just compensation to those who create the goods. As a result, a much higher percentage of the money consumers spend on products goes to those farmers and artisans.
Fair trade impacts not only the people who farm or make the goods you buy, but often an entire community. With a viable trade and a fair wage for the workers, children can go to school, families have better nutrition, and women have sustainable ways to make a living. In many cases the opportunities provided by fair trade combat human trafficking, child labor, and poverty.
Like me, you may have some misconceptions about what fair trade means.
Myth 1: Fair trade takes American jobs to other countries. Fair trade provides income to extremely poor communities. Most fair trade products, such as coffee and cocoa, do not have North American-based alternatives. Furthermore, as fair trade organizations expand in North America, they provide employment for more and more individuals in their home communities.
Myth 2: Fair trade refers only to coffee and crafts. Fair trade handicrafts have been on sale since 1946, and coffee was the first agricultural product to be certified fair trade in 1988. Now thousands of products are certified as fair trade.
Myth 3: Fair trade clothes are too hippie-like; they aren’t something I would normally wear. Fair trade clothes and shoes actually represent almost every style. There are a lot of great small stores that sell apparel of all types.
Myth 4: Fair trade production results in substandard goods for the consumer. Fair trade organizations continuously work with their producer partners to improve quality and consistency. Some fair traders have received industry awards for excellence.
www.fairtradefederation.org
This is the place to start if you want to learn more about fair trade and find fair trade products. Fair Trade Federation collects or lists most of the fair trade companies by category. For example, in the search bar under “Find Products,” you can select “Christian” to find fifty-eight different places to buy products that are fair trade and from Christian organizations. This site is also a great place to learn how buying fair trade products helps others. Check out the FAQ and Facts and Figures sections under “Explore Fair Trade.” Also, see the “Myths about FT,” which identifies some of the myths listed above.
coffee
By brewing fair trade coffee you (and your church) can directly help coffee farmers. Typically coffee farmers earn four
cents for a pound of coffee they pick by hand.
Most large coffee companies sell a fair trade version of their coffee. For example, the Café Estima Blend at Starbucks
is fair trade certified; Caribou Coffee features a rotating fair trade coffee; Seattle’s Best has a fair trade certified organic
French roast; and in Canada Tim Hortons is partnering with coffee growers in a sustainable coffee initiative.
To take it to the next level, however, you may choose to check out fair trade websites. There are lots of fair trade cof
fees out there, so here’s a list of my top five websites to get you started. This list is based on the quality of the websites
and the presentation of information. Order some beans and do your own taste tests.
shop.equalexchange.com
Equal Exchange is my top choice for fair trade coffee. Smartplanet.com is a website that delivers news, reviews, and tools to make it easier to create a greener and fairer world, and it highly ranked Equal Exchange for being both certified organic as well as fair trade, “providing interesting, detailed information about the cooperatives that grow the beans.” I have tried this coffee and liked it.
www.groundsforchange.com
Grounds for Change
www.coffeexchange.com
The Coffee Exchange
www.providencecoffee.com
Providence Coffee
26 | the covenant companion
www.altereco-usa.com
Alter Eco
GoodS, handicraftS, and more
It seems there are more places that sell handicrafts than coffee or clothes. Here are just a few that are either well known or unique.
www.tenthousandvillages.com/
Ten Thousand Villages is not only online but also has stores in the U.S. and Canada. They work with artisan groups in more than thirty countries. One of the oldest and largest fair trade organizations, they sell jewelry, home decor, gifts, and more.
www.brighthope.com
Bright Hope is a Christian ministry whose purpose is to bring hope to those earning less than $1 a day. The products here are unique and beautiful.
www.organicbouquet.com
Organic Bouquet works with growers who care about high environmental and social standards. That means they use practices that “aim to improve the quality of farm working conditions, minimize damage to ecosystems, conserve biodiversity, and enhance environmental quality for future generations.”
clotheS and ShoeS
Here are a couple of clothes and shoe companies to get you started.
www.fairindigo.com
Featured in Time magazine and the New York Times, this fair trade clothing store is full of clothes that look great.
nosweatapparel.com
No Sweat Apparel gets its name from being a “no sweatshop” company. Want to make a difference? Next time you buy t-shirts for a youth event or church retreat get them here.
www.autonomieproject.com
I chose this site because of their fun, trendy shoes. The Autonomie Project offers stylish sweatshop-free and eco-friendly footwear and accessories. They also have a blog that includes reminders about Bike-to-Work Week, tips on how to save the environment, recipes, and more.
www.isda-and-co.com
Isda & Co. has trendy and simple clothes. Where possible they use certified organic, fair-trade cotton, so it’s healthy for you and the farmer. They have visited every factory they work with to ensure that none of them uses child labor. ❏
heidi Griepp is manager of covenant internet Services and an avid Web wanderer.
