International Guide to Fair Trade Labels
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INTERNATIONAL GUIDE TO FAIR TRADE LABELS Edition 2020 The reference tool to better understand the guarantees of fair trade labels, their standards, monitoring measures and how they differ from sustainable development labels. ISBN: 979-10-94727-07-2 10€ / 11$ 2 INTERNATIONAL GUIDE TO FAIR TRADE LABELS For any operating license requests, please contact Commerce Équitable France: [email protected] 3 Authors of the guide Commerce Équitable France Commerce Équitable France is the national platform of the fair trade sector in France, bringing together companies, main fair trade labels on the French market, retailer networks, NGOs working on awareness raising or on support for small farmers’ organisations. Commerce Équitable France’s mission is to promote fair trade and trade justice towards public institutions, the private sector and consumers alike. www.commercequitable.org Fair World Project (FWP) Fair World Project is an independent campaign of the Organic Consumers Association which seeks to protect the use of the term "fair trade" in the marketplace, expand markets for authentic fair trade, educate consumers about key issues in trade and agriculture, advocate for policies leading to a just economy, and facilitate collaborative relationships to create true system change. www.fairworldproject.org FairNESS FairNESS (NESS: Network of Exchanges on Social Sciences) is a multidisciplinary network of researchers working on fair trade. FairNESS France, created in 2006 after the 2nd Fair Trade International Symposium (FTIS) in Montreal, brings together about 30 researchers from France, Belgium, Canada and Switzerland. www.fairnessfrancophone.wordpress.com FairNESS United Kingdom mirrors the continental Fairness Network and gathers UK academics. FairNESS UK primarily exists as an online platform for communication and information sharing. The two branches of FairNESS have set up and maintain a mission of knowledge exchange with practitioners, policy makers and donors concerned with themes of fair trade. www.fairnessuk.ning.com Forum Fairer Handel The Forum Fairer Handel is the association for fair trade in Germany. Its goal is to raise awareness of fair trade, to see its shared demands on trade and politics met, and to achieve a stronger expansion of fair trade. The Forum Fairer Handel views itself as the political voice of the fair trade movement in Germany and promotes fair basic conditions for trade and agriculture worldwide. It is active in the areas of publicity, education, and campaign and advocacy work. The Forum Fairer Handel organizes the annual Fair trade Fortnight in Germany. www.forum-fairer-handel.de AUTHORS AND ACADEMICS: Nadine ARNOLD, Elizabeth BENNETT, Manuel BLENDIN, Mathilde BROCHARD, Aurélie CARIMENTRAND, Mantiaba COULIBALY, Florence DE FERRAN, Émilie DUROCHAT, Garance GAUTREY, Dana GEFFNER, Camille LEYSSENE, Jonas LORENZ, Julie MAISONHAUTE, Olaf PAULSEN, Justine RIPOLL, Ninon SIRDEY and Julie STOLL. With the support of the members of the scientific committee Sylvaine LEMEILLEUR, Allison LOCONTO, Research fellow, French Research fellow, The French Agricultural Research Center National Institute for Agricultural for International Development Research (INRA) (CIRAD) Sociologist, researcher-actor for 15 years on the challenges Researcher in Agricultural Development Economics at of sustainable development. Specialized in the impact of CIRAD since 2008, and member of the UMR MOISA, certification systems, she studied the impact of private she is interested in the social and economic impacts sustainability standards in tea industry in Tanzania; the of standards on producers in developing countries. It development of standards for international certification mobilizes both qualitative and quantitative methods systems (ISEAL Alliance); their impacts on access to markets (econometrics), for a better understanding of the impact for small producers; participatory guarantee systems and and its measurement. other institutional innovations (Benin, Bolivia, Colombia, Namibia, Uganda, Tanzania, and Trinidad and Tobago). 4 Foreword his guide is an international collaborative to demand private sustainable development labels effort between four joint partners: Commerce as proof of conformity with social and environmental Équitable France, Fair World Project, FairNESS requirements. Since 2014, in France the term "fair trade" TFrance and Forum Fairer Handel. is defined in the Social and Solidarity Economy law. The definition of fair trade extends to relations with This project has been motivated by a context of significant changes within the fair trade sector. all producers, including those in France (formerly reserved for relations with developing countries). The fair trade movement and the different labels In terms of fair trade impacts, the demand from have experienced significant changes: consumers and professionals for concrete proof of Concerning the main existing fair trade labels: actual effects of fair trade is growing. fusion between Ecocert Equitable and Fair for Life, Lastly, the proliferation of sustainable development growing recognition equivalence among fair trade labels, initiatives of multinational companies and labels (WFTO and Fairtrade, etc.). the lack of understanding regarding the labels’ Growing initiatives and emergent labels of domestic requirements have created confusion among fair trade in the world: France, Belgium, Lebanon, etc. consumers and buyers. Fast growth of fair trade sales in Europe and the The main objectives of this guide are the following: need to understand and identify the credibility To provide a comprehensive overview of the issues and distinctiveness of fair trade guarantees. at stake in labelling. A new international fair trade charter was published To analyse the content and the monitoring in September 2018, with a general explanation of measures of the labels that overtly claim to be the shared vision and values of the global fair trade fair trade allowing professionals and consumers to movement. The main guidelines of the new charter are: evaluate each label and compare them to others - Creating the conditions for fair trade making similar claims. - Achieving inclusive economic growth To underline the specific features of fair trade guarantee systems/labels in comparison with - Providing decent work and helping to improve other sustainable development labels. wages and incomes To have an overview of the domestic fair trade - Empowering women and local initiatives. - Protecting the rights of children and investing This guide has been mainly designed for professionals in the next generation and institutional partners (companies, local and - Nurturing biodiversity and the environment regional authorities, state services) of the fair trade sector. Its aim is to make the purchase of fair trade - Influencing public policies goods easier for those in both private and public - Involving citizens in building a fair world procurement roles. "The new International Fair Trade Charter enshrines Consumers’ associations, NGOs and development the common vision and fundamental values of actors as well as academics will also find in this guide the Fair Trade movement to put us on the path accurate information to clarify their understanding to realising the Sustainable Development Goals" of fair trade standards and facilitate their work to strenghten producers’ organizations. The fair trade organizations are committed to respecting this common reference document for Are labels a tool that will change global trade? the global fair trade movement. Changing commercial trade in favour of economic As regards with legislative aspects, regulations justice and protection of the environment is the have evolved and now incorporate references to challenge for the global citizen movement of fair sustainable development labels. This is especially trade. Fair trade labels play their part in this global the case for the new European directives on public change by strengthening the credibility and visibility procurement (January 2014), which allow purchasers of the sector’s economic initiatives. 5 A common vision of fair trade, coexisting with External labels versus internal business approaches: different requirements What’s the difference? These labels stand out from other sustainability The core action of fair trade is based on the approaches thanks to a common vision, which is commitment of economic players. And we are reflected in the key fair trade commitments, integrated seeing that multinationals are increasingly developing into the labels’ specifications. Beyond what unites sustainable approaches for their supply chains. This them, they also deploy different approaches – whether shows that these businesses are becoming aware in the implementation of their commitments, the of the need to reinvest in the sectors of agricultural extent of their requirements or their monitoring production, often in order to ensure the security of methods. This guide aims to promote the common their supply chains. However, most multinationals requirement of fair trade labels, whilst providing a are creating their own specifications rather than precise and expert look at what distinguishes them utilising external labels. In this case, we are seeing from one another. that a commitment to fair prices is rarely the priority. This point constitutes a major difference between This fifth edition of the guide shows that there is a fair trade and sustainable development initiatives trend among most labels, from the oldest to the