FAIR TRADE:
Why Fair Trade?
Approximately 80 to 90 percent of coffee comes from small farmers who cultivate shade-grown bushes on one to three hectares of land. This means that most of the coffee we consume every day comes from very poor people with small farms.
Fair Trade is a response to the conventional trading system which has left small-scale coffee farmers disadvantaged, depressed and in a vicious cycle of poverty. The inability to access fair prices forces farmers off of the land; unable to feed and support their families with their coffee crop.
Fair Trade doesn't provide aid or charity but works toward the goal of more equitable trading relationships between producers and consumers. By guaranteeing a fair price for coffee crops, Fair Trade ensures that farmers make a living income which allows them to feed their families and continue to grow coffee. In addition, Fair Trade helps farmers access international markets and non-predatory loans for working capital.
Fair Trade also encourages traditional low-impact sustainable farming which small coffee farmers have traditionally followed, such as organic and shade-grown practices. Fair Trade ensures their ability to continue as responsible stewards of the land.
Transfair Canada is a non-profit Fair Trade monitoring organization with a rigorous audit system which tracks products from farm to market. The Transfair logo on our coffee bags verifies compliance to Fair Trade criteria and guarantees that we paid a fair price for the coffee.
Learn more about Fair Trade at www.transfair.ca
Your coffee selection has the potential for powerful economic and social change. Use your power as a consumer to support Fair Trade as an alternative to the injustices of today's global coffee market.
