Fair trade

Goods traded so that producers receive a fair return. Two different certification models exist.

Two approaches

Fair trade works through two broad mechanisms. The first is product certification — the international Fairtrade mark (FLO) being the best known. It covers defined commodities such as coffee, cocoa, sugar, bananas and cotton, and builds a minimum price and a premium into the standard.

The second certifies organisations rather than products. The World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) verifies that an enterprise as a whole operates on fair trade principles. This works for categories such as handicrafts, where per-commodity standards are hard to write.

Uncertified fair trade

Many businesses trade directly with producers and publish their pricing and relationships without holding certification, which costs money to obtain — smaller operations often skip it. What to look at then is how specifically they disclose the producer, the region and the terms.

What to check

Which certification, if any (FLO, WFTO, other)
Without certification, whether the producer and terms are disclosed
“Fair trade”, “ethical” and “sustainable” are not synonyms
For coffee and cocoa, certification plus single-origin information tells you more than either alone