Fairtrade Certification

Fairtrade certification is a product certification system designed to allow people to identify products that meet agreed environmental, labour and developmental standards. Overseen by a standard-setting body, Fairtrade International (FLO), and a certification body, FLO-CERT, the system involves independent auditing of producers to ensure the agreed standards are met. Companies offering products that meet the Fairtrade Standards may apply for licences to use the Fairtrade Certification Mark (or, in North America, the applicable Fair Trade Certified Mark) for those products.

The Fairtrade International certification system covers a growing range of products, including bananas, honey, oranges, cocoa, coffee, shortbread, cotton, dried and fresh fruits and vegetables, juices, nuts and oil seeds, quinoa, rice, spices, sugar, tea and wine. These commodities differ in their locations of production and labor used for production and distribution.

In 2009, Fairtrade certified sales amounted to approximately €3.4 billion (US $4.9 billion) worldwide, a 15% increase from 2008. Sales are further expected to grow significantly in the coming years: according to the 2005 Just-Food Global Market Review, Fairtrade sales should reach US$ 9 billion in 2012 and US$ 20-25 billion by 2020. The Fairtrade industry does not reveal how much of this is extra profit to retailers and distributors in rich countries, how much is spent on Fairtrade’s own costs or how much reaches the farmer.

As of 2011, 827 producer organizations in 58 developing countries were Fairtrade certified.

Read more about Fairtrade Certification:  How It Works, Fairtrade Standards, Fairtrade Inspection and Certification, Fairtrade Pricing, History