My name is Helene, and I have been an interrupter for the past several years. Recently, I moved to Southern California where I give tastings of interrupcion* Fair Trade products on an almost daily basis. I would like to relate an interesting occurrence at a very large Whole Foods store in El Segundo, California. The grocery store attracts a lot of Asian businessmen on tours of the area.
None of the men passing my demo table seemed to speak any English, and for the most part, they barely acknowledged me standing at the table as I invited them to taste Interrupcion* Fair Trade products. That is, until their Asian interpreter came along, who stopped momentarily in front of my table.
Since I have only seconds to catch a persons’ interest, I began to talk quickly about Interrupcion* Fair Trade products. As the interpreter translated the Fair Trade information, I got the feeling that the businessmen were still unmoved and not interested in tasting the products. The interpreter tried to help by tasting the Black Olive and giving the thumbs up sign.
I continued to explain as clearly as I could that Fair Trade is a process which positively impacts the farms, workers, and producers by building healthier communities while respecting our environment. This is done by guaranteeing that the farmers receive what they are entitled to: a larger share of the earnings that go directly back to them. Suddenly, the page turned. One of the men quickly whipped out a small note pad and pen and started taking notes furiously. I did not have any Interrupcion* Fair Trade business cards to pass out so I gave them one of my half empty demo jars of the Black Olive and pointed out the website for further investigation.
I am thankful for the interpreter who translated my explanation of what Fair Trade means in a nutshell — he seemed to understand the message and passed the information along so that the others could truly appreciate the meaning of Fair Trade. It was a beautiful connection, and I felt the impact of sharing the message of Fair Trade among this particular group of tourists. No matter who you are, the message is clear: everyone benefits from Fair Trade.
During the 2008 year, we visited all our Fair Trade certified producers and accompanied them in the process towards a permanent improvement that Fair Trade certification guarantees. We applied internal control systems to ensure the fulfillment of Fair Trade standards. In doing so, we defined effective implementations of production improvements as we articulated premiums assemblies that begin to define Fair Trade premiums investments.
All commercial operations that are carried out under a Fair Trade program generate premiums that will be invested in order to improve the living conditions of workers and ensure that our certified cooperatives are running smoothly. When the producer is independent, the assembly should determine how to use the whole percentage of the premiums.
Mechanisms of a workers assembly:
Previous to the harvest, a meeting takes place with the workers. In that assembly, the staffs of the Civil Association explain the meaning of Fair Trade, and the compromise that the farm owner has assumed along with the significance of a fair trade premium.
In that same meeting, the workers discuss what they consider to be the principal areas of investment. In this stage, the staff of Interrupción encourages participation among them.
The third function of the meeting consists of the election of the premium committee members. The staff of Interrupción try to encourage an outcome of elected members that represent the group as a whole and to guarantee an even balance, with participation by temporary and permanent workers. The Premium committee is responsible for the budgeting process and the implementation of the investments of the premiums. Of course, these decisions are made with the constant consultation of the Interrupción staff.
The Asociación Civil follows the decision making process to guarantee the appropriate operation of the committee.
The fair trade premiums are invested.
Along the country, we have found some similarities in the necessities of the workers
1- Health coverage difficulties: Not all workers have access to basic medical coverage, nor to discounts provided by their social security or the State. In this regard, each of the assemblies have proposed to create a health fund specifically made for emergency cases.
2- Outside Job training and productive entrepreneurship: Agricultural work is seasonal. Most of the workers migrate to other provinces after the harvest to look for new work opportunities. To prevent this migration some assemblies proposed to create “ESCUELA DE OFICIOS” (Job by trade school) where they can learn: Plumbing, electricity, carpentry and English among other skills. Besides, some workers have also expressed their desire to learn apiculture and pork butcher skills to generate alternative jobs in the farms.
3- Community support: In various opportunities, the assemblies have proposed to invest a percentage of the Premium to support local schools or improve life conditions of nearby towns.
~
Leandro Martelletti
Director Ejecutivo
Asociación Civil Interrupcion*
Grupo Interrupcion*
U.S. consumers are no longer strangers to Fair Trade, but cite lack of product availability as the main reason preventing them from buying fairly traded goods, a new study released by ALTER ECO FAIR TRADE today shows.
The study, conducted in collaboration with researchers from 6 major Universities across the nation, shows that more than 70% of the consumers interviewed are familiar with Fair Trade. The results of the report confirm that Fair Trade is consistently going mainstream, especially as larger brands and institutions continue to adopt Fair Trade practices. However, it also shows the Fair Trade market to be fragmented, with little name recognition for the small independent companies that have driven Fair Trade since the movement’s beginning.
Key findings include:
Awareness of Fair Trade is widespread, with two-thirds of respondents familiar with the term. However, despite a high level of familiarity with Fair Trade and informed opinions, many consumers have a vague understanding of Fair Trade.
Personal values and product quality drive consumers when purchasing Fair Trade items, which confirm findings of previous studies.
Although price is an impediment for consumers who have never bought Fair Trade products before, most will pay a premium for brands they trust, emphasizing the importance of brand loyalty to the purchase decision.
The availability of Fair Trade products is still limited - less than half of respondents report seeing Fair Trade items where they normally shop.
There is no single, dominant Fair Trade brand in the minds of consumers. One-third of respondents feel that availability of Fair Trade products would influence their choice of retailer.
While coffee continues to be the most popular Fair Trade category (66.6% of research participants cited coffee), several other categories are emerging in popularity including tea, cocoa, fruit, and rice/grains.
These findings, ALTER ECO believes, create an incentive for mainstream retail outlets to stock more Fair Trade items and help educate their customers on the benefits of Fair Trade.
“We applaud the more mainstream retailers for adopting Fair Trade practices and offerings, which is a key contributor to the increased awareness and offerings of Fair Trade in the market,” said Edouard Rollet, Chief Operating Officer of ALTER ECO Fair Trade. “As small, independent companies who have pioneered Fair Trade in collaboration with grass roots and alternative organizations throughout the industrialized world, it is still our responsibility to promote an alternative form of trade that benefits all stakeholders, including the most marginalized populations, farmers and families.”
The study, sponsored by ALTER ECO Fair Trade was implemented in collaboration with University of Arizona, University of Nebraska-Omaha, University of California-Berkeley, Colorado State University, University of Illinois-Chicago and the University of Wyoming. Close to 500 interviews were conducted in 6 markets: Berkeley (California), Fort Collins (Colorado), Tuscon (Arizona), Chicago (Illinois), Omaha (Nebraska), and Laramie (Wyoming).
Since conducting its first world consumer study 2001 in collaboration with PricewaterhouseCoopers, Alter Eco has regularly surveyed the Fair Trade market to monitor evolution in awareness, trends, and opportunities to better market fair trade products to mainstream consumers. In a true transparent and dynamic approach for the field, Alter Eco makes the findings and recommendations available to other organizations eager to increase market share for fairly trade products.
The full study is available online at www.altereco-usa.com/altereco-fairtrade-study2008usa.pdf
ALTER ECO Fair Trade is a San Francisco-based company dedicated to the import and wholesale of Fair Trade and organic food products. The company currently offers an exotic variety of products including lines of chocolate, coffee, tea, rice, quinoa and rice. More information on ALTER ECO and our 100% Fair Trade product line is available on our website: www.altereco.com.
Fair Trade is a form of global commerce where priority is given to trading with small and marginalized farmer groups, and building trade relations based on solidarity and sustainability. This approach ensures them fair remuneration that covers the full cost of production and contributes to the continual improvement of working conditions and environmental sustainability.
This approach aims to:
- Guarantee the workers decent working conditions and revenues.
- Facilitate the development and steady growth of autonomous production centers.
The University of Wisconsin Oshkosh is the first university in the U.S.
to become a Fair Trade University by making a commitment to do its part
toward ending trade injustices that result in millions of people living
in poverty.
Fair trade products have been produced providing artisans and farmers
with a living wage for their work and humane working conditions, while
also protecting the environment. About 70 universities in Europe have
Fair Trade University status, including the University of Birmingham and
the University of Edinburgh, but UW Oshkosh is the first American
university to do so.
To become a Fair Trade University, UW Oshkosh’s four governing bodies
endorsed a resolution outlining its commitment to: selling Fair Trade
Certified coffee, tea and chocolate in dining establishments, at catered
functions and in department offices whenever feasible and within the
confines of its food service contract; offering Fair Trade Certified
food products and handicrafts at University stores whenever possible;
and identifying and acknowledging Fair Trade Certified products and
encouraging their purchase by students, faculty and staff. The Fair
Trade program will be overseen by the newly formed Campus Sustainability
Council.
“Sustainability goes well beyond being ‘green’,” said Chancellor
Richard H. Wells. “It includes social justice as well. By becoming a
Fair Trade University, UW Oshkosh is making a commitment to do our part
toward helping workers around the world get a livable wage and humane
working conditions. As a large institution, UW Oshkosh can play an
important part in shaping the future and in supporting green practices
on all levels.”
Becoming a Fair Trade University is not the first step UW Oshkosh has
taken toward becoming more sustainable. The University is a member of
the Fair Labor Association, and only works with vendors who have been
inspected by the organization and certified as not subjecting employees
to sweatshop conditions.
“Becoming a Fair Trade University is a natural next step for us,”
said Petra Roter, vice chancellor for student affairs. “This is part
of who we are and demonstrates what we believe.”
In 2002 the University became one of the first to endorse the Earth
Charter — an international declaration of interdependence that
outlines fundamental principles for building a just, sustainable, and
peaceful global society for the 21st century.
In 2003, UW Oshkosh became the first Wisconsin university to join the
Environmental Protection Agency’s Green Power Partnership by agreeing
to purchase at least 3 percent of its energy from renewable sources,
making it at the time the largest purchaser of green energy in
Wisconsin. As a result, the University won an EPA Green Power Purchase
Award and was listed by the EPA as an Energy Star Case Study.
The University also received the 2003 EPA Leadership Award — the 11th
U.S. university to receive the EPA’s highest leadership award. In
2004, UW Oshkosh won a National Wildlife Federation Campus Ecology
Recognition Award for its campus environmental audit and in 2005, the
university received a second Energy Star Award from the EPA.
In 2008, the University adopted a policy to purchase cage-free eggs and
unveiled its Campus Sustainability Plan, which guides its efforts to
continue as a national leader in responsible environmental stewardship,
education, outreach and research.
Additionally, UW Oshkosh is one of only 41 universities in the United
States listed on the U.S. Department of Energy’s Web site as a large
purchaser of renewable energy.
The University will also be announcing this month the results of a
carbon footprint study, conducted in collaboration with Johnson
Controls.
“Sustainability is a long-term commitment and an important one for
higher education. Fair trade is particularly important because it is
focused on both social justice and environmental responsibility,” said
David Barnhill, chair of UW Oshkosh’s environmental studies program.
“One of the most important features of fair trade is that, unlike free
trade, it empowers growers and workers in developing countries and
provides economic security.”
Barnhill added that he expects that UW Oshkosh’s declaration will
result in other universities in the U.S. seeking Fair Trade University
status, leading to the formation of a formal organization to monitor and
support their efforts.
While there are no other Fair Trade Universities in the U.S., there are
Fair Trade Towns. Milwaukee was one of the first cities in the U.S. to
become a Fair Trade Town.
It was just like any other Saturday as far as how most New Yorkers felt. Warm sunshine filling the last shadow of the cold winter‘s remains. It was the start to the summer we all had been waiting for. But it wasn’t just a Saturday. It was World Fair Trade day. On May 10th 2008, people from all walks of life all across the world came together to raise awareness of what fair trade means and why fair trade matters to you. What makes trade fair? What do you know about fair trade?
I came out to Union Square where my friends and fellow interrupters were gathering to celebrate the occasion. We were twelve young, strong, passionate people uniting for a common goal: to make an impact on a person to person level by trading a piece of fruit for a piece of their time. We donned our interrupcion* t-shirts with the orange beacon of hope signaling the call to arms, and loaded ourselves to the gills with bushels and baskets of gala apples. I had brought my guitar in case the situation called for it. We needed to get across the message of fair trade by any means necessary.
It was my first experience as an interrupter. For most people I encountered, it was their first experience being interrupted. It was a chance to share with people just what exactly is fair trade. How did these 1,500 royal gala apples wind up on a bustling corner of a park in Manhattan, and what were we going to do with them? For the apples, their story was coming to an end. We would soon hand out the delicious argentine apples to be enjoyed by anyone and everyone willing to listen to that apple’s story from the beginning. It’s a story all too well known and all too easily forgotten. Farmers teetering on the edge of poverty, who are being taken advantage of for the benefit of a select few. World Fair Trade Day was a chance to be their voice to those willing to listen. Along with a strong coalition of dedicated interrupters, I filled up my basket with fruit and flyers and began interrupting.
*Excuse me, do you have a minute for fair trade?*
They want an apple. I know it. I want a minute of their time. Seems like a fair trade, no? One little apple for one big idea?
*Oh, I’ve heard of that… but what is it?*
People were more than willing to step outside their life’s daily routine and engage their curiosity to find out what fair trade means, why it matters, and how we can do more to make trade fair. It was a time to share, to talk and to listen.
*Well, fair trade guarantees a certain set of standards that uphold a quality of life that every human being is entitled to have. Fair wages and proper working conditions. Fair trade cuts out unnecessary middlemen in favor of the farmer who deserves a fair shake.*
*well,… what’s the catch?*
*There’s no catch. No strings attached. Know that your purchase has power. Every time you purchase your produce you have a choice. Know where your money goes when you spend it. How is that money being used? How fair is your fruit? Right now there is a problem with the trade process. The people that need money the most end up getting the least. We need to change the system. Your choice can be that change.*
*Where can I buy fair trade?*
*You can buy fair trade at your local supermarket right here right now in New York, New York. The next time you find yourself in Gristedees, Whole foods, or the Food Emporium, look for the * and make the change to fair trade. What’s there not to love? You are supporting a community that needs it the most. Know where your money goes. Feel good about the decision you make while you make a difference.*
*Where are these apples coming from? Shouldn’t I buy local to support my community?*
*These apples, along with a wide variety of other fruit, is coming from Argentina. When fruit isn’t growing here, fruit is ripe for the picking in Argentina. So when you can’t buy local, buy fair trade.*
*Good apple. Buy fair trade. Why not?*
*Thanks for caring. Have a flyer and look for the asterisk!*
*Thanks for the apple. What is this, a royal gala? It’s delicious.*
We were in full swing on Fair Trade Day with interrupters engaging in conversation with baskets of apples in hand, handing out fliers and sharing ideas. Everyone was excited. People were ready to listen. We found out most people are more than willing to learn. All we need is to spread the message, share our feelings, and put things in their right place. It’s not just about treating somebody fairly, its about treating someone the way you would expect to be treated yourself. Justly. It starts with a conversation , it builds into a revolution, and it ends in a collective conscious founded on our commitment to each other, to ourselves and to our world as an all inclusive community. This is our world. We are in this together. Let us unite.
When I found myself at the rally and ideas took shape, the question for my action was not why? Rather, why not? Why not us, why not here, why not now? What is it you believe in? What will you do to realize that dream and make right this reality? Oftentimes we can be creatures of habit and skeptics of change. But if something isn’t right, how do you make it better? What will stand in your way? What will be the turning point, and what will you have to do to get there? How will you recognize the call and how will you embrace the call to arms? What’s the difference if you don’t behave differently? What do you care about enough to make other people care just as much? How big of a difference do you think there is between you and me? How can we bridge the distance between where we are and where we need to be?
That Saturday wasn’t the signal of the changing seasons. It was a changing of the guard. The change came from within me. It had always been there since before I could remember. I just finally embraced it. I had become part of Interrupcion*, an active member of the movement to support the cause and help realize the solution. Interrupcion* connected with people, and people made the connection: Isn’t it time we made the world fair? Our dedicated group of interrupters reached out to everyone around us and people embraced the fair trade way. In time, the message will be spread until we’re all singing the same tune. Maybe that’s why I brought my guitar. Let us continue this change until there is no difference between us and them. My name is Brandon, and I’m an interrupter.
This report from Asociación Civil, interrupcion*s non-profit arm in Argentina, details the socio-economic situation of the rural farmers in the Neuquén Province of Argentina and highlights the positive impact that fair trade has on three interrupcion* member cooperatives of apple and pear farmers.You can download the report here.
After almost a year of planning and preparing with our Argentine producer partners, we embarked on interrupcion*’s first-annual Fair Trade Certification tour with the Institute for Market-ecology, our 3rd-Party Fair Trade Certifier. We worked with the inspectors for 15 days straight (sleeping on buses!), travelling to Argentine production areas in Tucuman, La Rioja, Mendoza, Rio Negro Valley and Bariloche. IMO’s team consisted of three inspectors (Henrich from Germany, Alejandra from Chile and Teresa from Bolivia) that conducted countless worker and producer interviews, verified payment and farm records, evaluated sustainable production practices and analyzed interrupcion*’s Fair Trade commercial practices. It takes about a month for the certificaiton decision to be issued by IMO, but we are expecting good news: interrupcion* and the producers were compliant in all of IMO’s minimum requirements. We consider this a “baseline” measurement of sustainability and with support from U.S. buyers and consumers, these producers and interrupcion* will continue marching down the Fair Trade* Sustainable Development Path toward a sustainable future!
In all, we visited 9 production operations that represent over 50 producers of:
Blueberries
Cherries
Apples
Pears
Spices for Chimichurri Sauce
Olive Oil
Olive Paste
Honey
Check out our product pages for more pictures of the trip!
And, a special thanks to Joyce Wong and Leandro Martelleti for all of their insight and hard work. This accomplishment wouldn’t have been possible without them!
