Impact ID: 585
fair trade crushed olive spread
interrupcion* fair trade
An all-natural spread made from freshly handpicked olives in the Mendoza Province of Argentina. Olives are crushed and puréed until smooth, leaving it with a clean, pure, fruity flavor. Ideal as a spread on gourmet bread, crackers and pita. Also, excellent served with vegetables, fish and meat or used as an ingredient in pasta sauce and salad dressings.
1. Cooperativa Colihua
Olive Cultivation
Argentina’s economic collapse in 2001 forced many below the poverty line and informal employment has proliferated. Today, 45% of Argentina’s workforce still works in ‘negro’ (i.e. without legal registration) earning an average $156 per month, or 60% below the national minimum wage. With Fair Trade certification, Francisco Alcaraz S.A. has ensured that all workers are employed legally, working in safe conditions and earning the national minimum wage. Every purchase of inft* Crushed Olives supports their small operation, it’s all-natural production and demonstrates to other businesses in the region that profitability and social responsibility go hand in hand.
2. Roberto Alcaraz S.A. (o)
Process Olives into Crushed Olive Spread
Argentina’s economic collapse in 2001 forced many below the poverty line and informal employment has proliferated. Today, 45% of Argentina’s workforce works in ‘negro’, without legal registration or benefits, earning an average of $156 per month, or 60% below the national minimum wage. Roberto Alcaraz S.A. has ensured that all workers are employed legally, working in safe conditions and earning the national minimum wage. Additionally, they have committed to paying Cooperativa Colihua 5% over the regional market-price for olives to be used in our 2008 Crushed Olive Spread. Every purchase of interrupcion* fair trade Crushed Olive Spread supports this medium-sized operation, it’s all-natural production and demonstrates to other businesses in the region that profitability and social responsibility go hand in hand.
Cooperativa Colihua is working to strengthen its cooperative of small and medium producers in order to compete with corporate production in the region. An important challenge is finding higher-value markets for their products. Currently the cooperative’s main avenue of trade is bulk export to Brazil because supermarkets in Argentina require a large payment to access their shelves: an investment that only dominant olive traders can afford. interrupcion* is working with Cooperativa Colihua to direct a portion of their harvest into the 2008 production of our Crushed Olive Spread. Social Premiums generated from all 2008 Crushed Olive Spread sales will be invested in capacity to also package and label whole olives for sale in the U.S. with interrupcion*. A better deal and higher-value markets through Fair Trade will provide the economic stability needed for providing each of the cooperative’s 362 temporary workers with employment benefits. We look forward to working toward this goal with Cooperativa Colihua in the coming year.
