November 2009

Co-founder of Max Havelaar considers launching a new fair trade label

In September Van der Hoff, who was at the basis of the famous Max Havelaar fair trade label, openly talked about the “crisis” that he witnesses in the fair trade sector on CBC Radio, a Canadian radio station. He is planning on launching a new fair trade label, because he is very concerned about the fact that the interests of large (producer) associations are threatening the fundamental reason of existence of fair trade: The support and protection of small farmers.

Frans Van der Hoff is Dutch and comes from a farmer family. He is considered the founder of fair trade coffee (1988) and is a well-known fair trade promoter and follower. He obtained PhDs in Germany in both political economy and in theology. Along with Nico Roozen, he founded the Max Havelaar organisation and label in 1989. This initiative was honoured by Jacques Chirac (French president at the time) with a Legion d’Honneur medal. Van der Hoff was also a Catholic priest. Loyal to his agricultural roots, Van der Hoff still grows fair trade coffee in Mexico.

[ Listen to the interview ]

Fairtrade fights banana price war

Increase in Fairtrade Banana Prices counters Supermarkets Race to the Bottom.

Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO) is raising the Fairtrade minimum price for bananas to its highest level to date despite downward spiraling supermarket prices. FLO considers the move necessary to satisfy producer needs in the face of rising costs of production.

[ More info: fairtrade.net ]

Nestle’s Kit Kat could follow Fairtrade trend (UK)

Discussions are underway between Nestle and Fairtrade for the confectioner’s Kit Kat brand to become Fairtrade-certified, reports claim. Kit Kat is Britain’s best-selling chocolate bar, which would make it the biggest single Fairtrade-certified brand if talks are successful, according to dailymail.co.uk. The Fairtrade logo is already appearing on rival brands as Fairtrade earlier this year certified Cadbury's Dairy Milk.

The Daily Mail reported that a spokeswoman for Nestle would only confirm that discussions had taken place with Fairtrade.

[ Read more: Foodbizdaily.com ]

Rainforest Alliance: transforming the tea industry

In a major step toward sustainability, the Rainforest Alliance and the Ethical Tea Partnership (ETP) -an international non-competitive alliance of 20 tea packers committed to responsible production- have signed an agreement that will further their vision of an industry-wide commitment to sustainable agriculture. The organizations have teamed up to build competence within the tea sector to tackle sustainability issues from the grassroots upwards and through to certification. The organizations are jointly developing a program to train producers how to use ETP self-assessment tools should they decide to pursue Rainforest Alliance certification. The training will teach tea growers about certification and farm management practices and introduce the concept of continual improvement to get them on the path toward sustainability. Farmers who can meet Sustainable Agriculture Network certification standards can get their farms certified and leverage their accomplishment by displaying the Rainforest Alliance Certified green frog seal.

"This innovative commitment will positively change the tea industry and significantly drive it toward sustainability," says Tensie Whelan, president of the Rainforest Alliance.

[ More info: rainforest-alliance.org ]

Fair Trade fashion on major Euro runways 

Fair Trade clothing lines and textiles were showcased during the recent fashion events in Paris and London. Fashion lines of People Tree, Pachacuti, Oxfam, Ethical Fashion Forum and Trading for Development were exhibited during the London Fashion Week last September and the Paris Ethical Fashion Week early this month.

These leading Fair Trade fashion clothing and accessories distributors and their team of designers have shown that socially responsible products sourced from small producers could end up in the high end fashion, boosting the incomes of small textile and garments producers in poor countries.

[ Read more: wfto.com ]

A book on trade, climate change and sustainable development

Trade, Climate Change and Sustainable Development: key issues for small states, least developing countries and vulnerable economies

Responding to climate change is a global challenge with significant implications for small developing countries. Debate on how trade policy can mitigate the effects of climate change has so far centred on developed countries and the large emerging economies, especially China, Brazil and India, but what are the implications for small and vulnerable economies (SVEs), least developed countries (LDCs) and small island developing states (SIDS)? These countries are the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change but they are least equipped to deal with changes in trade policy. "Trade, Climate Change and Sustainable Development" examines the opportunities and multiple large-scale challenges they face in adapting key trade sectors to the impact climate change, addressing climate change measures, and furthering their own trade capacity and competitiveness in the global market. This book is the result of a joint project between the Commonwealth Secretariat and the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development, Geneva. It will be of interest to policy-makers and anyone who wants to gain a clear understanding of the implications of climate change on the economies of smaller developing states.

Paperback: 170 pages
Publisher: Commonwealth Secretarial (October 30, 2009)
ISBN-10: 0850928818
ISBN-13: 978-0850928815

Kraft Foods commits to Rainforest Alliance Certified program

Cocoa farming, tropical environments benefit from Kraft Foods’ remarkable extended commitment to Rainforest Alliance Certified program

Chocolate became a little sweeter today as international conservation organization the Rainforest Alliance announced that Kraft Foods has committed to use cocoa beans only from Rainforest Alliance Certified™ farms across its entire Côte d’Or and Marabou lines, equal to some 30,000 ton of beans by end of 2012.
This is a momentous step for the European chocolate market that will not only benefit the environment, but also the lives of the cocoa farmers and their families. Based on pioneering work started in 2005 in the Côte d’Ivoire, Kraft Foods has now launched the first mainstream chocolate products in Europe to carry the Rainforest Alliance Certified™ seal. Starting in France and Belgium, Côte d’Or premium dark chocolate will contain at least 30 percent cocoa from Rainforest Alliance Certified™ farms. Over the coming months, the certified Côte d’Or range will be rolled out to consumers in the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, the Netherlands, Canada and the United States. It will also be available to chocolate lovers in Sweden, Denmark and Finland under the Marabou brand; and using the Suchard brand in Austria and Switzerland. By the end of 2012 all the cocoa in Côte d’Or and Marabou will be sourced from certified farms.  

[ Read the whole article ]

Discover a project in the South that is funded by the Trade for Development Centre:

CentroCafé, an association of small coffee producers in Peru

CenfroCafe is an association of small coffee producers; it operates in an extremely poor part of northern Peru. CenfroCafe was founded 10 years ago by a group of family producers and meanwhile it has become the fourth largest coffee producers organisation of Peru.

CenfroCafe is active in the Jaén, San Ignacio and Bagua provinces in the Cajamarca and Amazonas regions, two of the poorest regions of the country. Cultivation of rice and coffee form the basis of the economy in these provinces and therefore provide the largest source of income for many families. But the shortcomings or the absence of the basic infrastructure in the countryside, such as roads and water, among other things, undermine the possibility to further develop existing economic activities or to diversify them in the short term.

It is in such an environment that CenfroCafe wants to stimulate economic development of the Cajamarca and Amazonas regions, which explains the logic of the project.

[ Read more ]

OTHER INFORMATION

FAIR TRADE

SUSTAINABLE TRADE

TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT