Fairtrade International
Fairtrade International, or Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International e.V. is a product-oriented multistakeholder group aimed at promoting the lives of farmers and workers through trade. Fairtrade's work is guided by a global strategy focused on ensuring that all farmers earn a living income, and agricultural workers earn a living wage. Fairtrade works with farmers and workers of more than 300 commodities. The main products promoted under the Fairtrade label are coffee, cocoa, banana, flowers, tea, and sugar. Fairtrade is an association of three Producer Networks, 19 National Fairtrade Organizations (formerly: Fairtrade Labelling Organizations) and 8 Fairtrade  Marketing Organizations that promote and market the Fairtrade Certification Mark in their countries Producer Networks exist in Latin America and The Caribbeans; Africa and Middle East; Asia and Pacific. National Fairtrade Organizations exist in 16 European countries as well as in Canada, the United States, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Fairtrade International also oversees Fairtrade Marketing Organizations in the Czech Republic, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India, Philippines, and Poland. History. Fairtrade International was established in 1997. To ensure compliance with the Fairtrade standards relating to labour standards, cooperative organization, and the governance of the Fairtrade benefits, the organization was divided  in January 2004 into two independent organizations: Membership. The following are National Fairtrade Organizations and Fairtrade Marketing Organizations: These initiatives were joined in 2007 by three Producer Networks: Structure. Fairtrade International is divided into six units: The coordination of all global activities is led by a Global Leadership Team, made of the CEO, the COO, and the CVO (Chief Value Officer) Fairtrade standards. Given the development focus of fair trade, related standards contain minimum requirements that all producer organisations must meet to become certified as well as progress requirements in which producers must demonstrate improvements over time. There are two  types of fair trade standards for disadvantaged producers: standards for small farmers' organizations and for hired labor situations. A list of hazardous materials whose use in production of Fairtrade products is prohibited is maintained by Fairtrade International, along with materials whose use is "restricted", only to be used in specified conditions, and a list of other hazardous materials which are "flagged" as being hazardous and only to be used "under extreme caution". These lists are known as the "red list", "orange list" and "yellow list" respectively. For some products, such as coffee, only fair trade standards for small farmers' organizations  are applicable. For others, such as tea, both small farmers' organizations and plantations can be certified. Fair trade standards and procedures are approved by the FLO Standards Committee, an external committee comprising all FLO stakeholders (labeling initiatives, producers, and traders) and external experts. Fair trade standards are set in accordance to the requirements of the ISEAL Code of Good Practice in standards setting and are in addition the result of an extensive consultation process, involving a variety of stakeholders: producers, traders, external experts, inspectors, certification staff etc. In 2020, Fairtrade issued a position statement defending their use of private standards  in response to a report from The Institute for Multi-Stakeholder Initiative Integrity (MSI Integrity). International Fairtrade Certification Mark. The Fairtrade Mark is an international independent consumer Mark which appears on products as a guarantee that producers and traders have met fair trade standards. The Fairtrade Mark is owned and protected by Fairtrade International, on behalf of its 25-member and associate member labeling initiatives and producer networks. For a product to carry the Fairtrade Mark, it must come from FLOCERT inspected and certified producer organizations. The crops must be grown and harvested in accordance with the International Fairtrade Standards  set by Fairtrade International. The supply chain is also monitored by FLOCERT to ensure the integrity of labelled products. Only authorized licensees can use the Fairtrade Mark on their products.