Fair Trade

Project FAIR

What is Fair Trade?

Fair trade is a label given to products and companies who abide by these guidelines:

• Pay fair wages to workers and farmers• Not employ children• Not overwork employees• Use humane ethics

How are Fair Trade and Normal Trade Different?

When purchasing items that are not fair trade, the product producers (farmers or craftsmen) unfortunately are often paid wages on which a typical farmer can not survive, ultimately not allowing them to support themselves or family.

Fair Trade to Consumers

Fair Trade offers consumers a powerful way to reduce poverty through their everyday shopping.

Fair Trade to Farmers and Workers in Developing Countries

To farmers and workers, fair trade offers better prices, improved terms of trade, and the business skills necessary to produce high-quality products that can compete in the global marketplace.

Non Fair Trade

If a company is not a fair trade company, then they often use unfair labor practices such as unfair wages, child labor, and even slave labor! Not only are these labor practices inhumane and appalling, but they also contradict the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

What’s the Problem?

“As long as we keep paying companies to be unsustainable and unethical, they will be.”

In this day and age, people are unaware of the indecencies against human beings and large scale companies taking advantage of these underdeveloped countries. If the world remains unaware of this problem, then the non fair trade companies will continue to flourish.

Why Does this Happen?

Many companies that do not use fair labor practices do not utilize it because, recently, they have not been forced to do so. There is not a high enough demand for fair trade products that pressure producers to make the

change. If the world would go out and truly want fair trade products, then large corporations would move towards our fair trade goal.

What Can YOU Do to Help?

• Change a few items in your shopping cart to fair trade alternatives

• Attend local fair trade events• Visit local fair trade shops• Get others involved- tell friends and family

about fair trade and they might also want to help

Fair Trade Products

Chocolate, Soap, Bananas, Tea, Coffee, Sugar, Biscuits, Dried Fruit, Nuts, Energy Drinks, Peanut Butter, Olive Oil, Rice, Pasta, Sports Equipment, and Wine are all products that can be made and bought fairly.

Fair Trade Logos

When purchasing products, look for any of these logos to confirm whether or not the product is fair trade.

Where to Find Fair Trade Products

While you can find many fair trade products online, they can be easily bought in stores that are:

• Known to have organic products• Environmentally sustainable• Small, family owned grocers

Who Are We?

We are Project FAIR, a group of eighth grade students aiming to educate our community about fair trade, and teach people how to help ensure that workers have available schools, good wages, and livable conditions.

How Are We Helping?

So far, we have worked vigorously to educate our community through ways such as informational speaking, the selling of fair trade goods and products, distributing hundreds of flyers or brochures, and we are even aiming for our school lunches to have fair trade fruits and vegetables added! Our goal is for everybody to know what fair trade is, how to recognize it, and why they should care.

Market Place

At our school, students are given the opportunity to create and run their own booth where they can sell any sort of item. We used this time to sell and spread the word on fair trade products.

Selling Fair Trade Products!

Elementary Schools Tour

To inform the youth of our school district, we went to some elementary schools in our district to inform the students about fair trade.

Visiting the Elementary Schools!

You Can Help

As easily as purchasing a brand of food that you would not normally purchase can change the lives of the distressed, overworked, and poverty-stricken people all over the world. A single item per store visit has the opportunity to help the world. Now that you know of the cruelties that are inflicted upon human beings, we hope that you will make the right, heartfelt decision when purchasing any item with a fair trade alternative.