This paper situates debates about the legitimacy of Fairtrade certification within a wider academic literature that considers consumer-producer dynamics in relation to a political economy framework. Drawing on archive research conducted as part of a recently completed PhD, this paper re-examines how Fair Trade has evolved and what impact this has had on the consumer-producer dynamics within the Fairtrade model.
history of walmart, Why is this such a big dal, Sweatshops and Wal-Mart, Unethical practices, UNFAIR Treatment OF EMPLOYEES, UNFAIR Treatment OF EMPLOYEES, low wages, health issues at workplace, overtime, Immigration law, conclusion
history of walmart, Why is this such a big dal, Sweatshops and Wal-Mart, Unethical practices, UNFAIR Treatment OF EMPLOYEES, UNFAIR Treatment OF EMPLOYEES, low wages, health issues at workplace, overtime, Immigration law, conclusion
This paper is an attempt to explore the extent to which competition policy can be used to address problems caused by corporate concentration and the exercise of 'buyer power' in agricultural commodity markets. It assesses the conceptual and practical opportunities of current competition policy to tackle this phenomenon and also highlights its limitations.
One first-timers learnings from the Sustainable Brands conference 2013, San Diego. A "Sustainability 101" for the uninitiated or those looking for a refresh.
Case 13Corporate Social Responsibility and the Fair-Trade MovemeTawnaDelatorrejs
Case 13
Corporate Social Responsibility and the Fair-Trade Movement: How Fair Is Fair Trade?
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHIES
Pamela J. Rands holds an MBA from Western Illinois University with a focus in finance. She is the coauthor of numerous encyclopedia articles and was the research assistant for the second edition of the book, Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic. Her research interests include corporate social responsibility and personal responsibility for social action.
Gordon P. Rands is a professor of management and former department chair at Western Illinois University, is a past chair of the Organizations and the Natural Environment division of the Academy of Management, and is a past president of the International Association for Business and Society. His research interests focus on environmental sustainability, corporate social performance, and various institutions’ responsibilities for solving social problems.
OVERVIEW
Fair trade is a concept that generally aims to help producers in developing countries receive a fair price for their products, thus reducing poverty; it also usually implies ethical treatment of workers and support of environmentally sustainable practices. The fair-trade movement has increasingly captured the hearts and purse strings of consumers in developed nations who are seeking to “do the right thing.” But does purchasing products with a fair-trade label actually produce the good they think it will?
THE FAIR-TRADE DILEMMA
Crystal Kepple, general manager of the Macomb [IL] Food Co-op, sighed and leaned back in her chair as she worked on completing the co-op’s next food order from United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI). What quantities of various fair-trade products should she order for the small consumer-owned co-op?
Fair-trade chocolate, tea, and coffee from Equal Exchange—itself a worker-owned cooperative based in Massachusetts—were all popular with co-op shoppers. So was Runa, a “clean energy” drink made from leaves of the guayusa tree, a species of holly native to the Amazon rainforest.1 Crystal and many Macomb Co-op shoppers shared the fair-trade ideals of environmental sustainability and economic justice. But she had begun to wonder about traceability. Could she guarantee to customers that all the ingredients in the products the Co-op sold had been produced in an environmentally sound manner and that the workers who grew and harvested the plants really were receiving better wages for their efforts than those who provided non–fair-trade ingredients?
p.450
Furthermore, the chairman of the co-op’s board of directors, himself an ardent fan of fair trade, had just mentioned some articles he found online that questioned whether fair trade was having the desirable effects its proponents claimed, and posited that the movement might even be leaving workers worse off. “No time to figure this all out now,” Crystal thought, as she turned back to the computer, “but I have to before next month’s order.” With that, she reordered the sam ...
Leveraging Institutional Dollars for a Just and Healthy Food System -Farm to ...
Social History Society, Glasgow (March 2010)
1. The Social History Society Annual Conference University of Glasgow (March 2010) Matthew Anderson www.researchfairtrade.com Fairtrade: Partners in Development? A reassessment of consumer-producer dynamics within the Fairtrade model
2.
3. ‘ Supermarkets have contributed to the rapid growth of Fair Trade in the United Kingdom, and in some cases are playing an important role in supporting producers in developing countries, but they are also driving a shift from producer- to consumer-led Fair Trade.’ Producer-led or consumer-led? S. Barrientos & S. Smith, ‘Mainstreaming Fair Trade in Global Networks’, in L. Raynold, D. Murray & J. Wilkinson (eds.) Fair Trade: The challenges of transforming globalisation , (London: Routledge, 2007), p. 120.
4. ‘ Fair Trade is more of a consumer- dependent movement for change rather than a consumer- led movement.’ M. K. Goodman, ‘Reading Fair Trade: political ecological imaginary and the moral economy of Fair Trade foods’, Political Geography 23 (2004) p. 901. A consumer-dependent movement for change
5. Challenging labelling companies ‘ No one knows where the authority to make and impose their rules on others came from. They seem self appointed.’ Fr shay Cullen, People's Recovery, Empowerment Development Assistance Foundation (Preda), March 2006.
6. What is ‘authentic’ Fair Trade? WFTO represents over 350 organisations committed to 100% Fair Trade. FLO represents 19 Labelling Initiatives covering 23 countries. In 2008, consumers spent an estimated €2.9bn on Fairtrade certified products. World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO)
7. Oxfam Shop in Summertown, Oxford, (1988) Oxfam Co-op Project ‘ Help the Hungry to Help Each Other’ (1966) ) Oxfam: Helping by Selling
8. ‘ The Fair Trade Mark is an ambition to engage UK consumer power on a significant scale, to give a fairer deal to Third World producers of basic commodities.’ Fair Trade Mark Steering Group, (August 1989) Fairtrade Foundation: a fairer deal?
9. Nestlé: Partners’ Blend Nestlé’s Fairtrade certified coffee, Partners’ Blend, was launched in October 2005.
10. ‘ The larger battle for trade justice cannot be won with shopping bag politics.’ Tomy Mathews, Fair Trade Alliance Kerala (FTAK) and Fairtrade Foundation Board Member. Conclusions