World Fair Trade Day promotes justice in trade

Culemborg, Netherlands: Fair Trade producers and the people buying their products are the real drivers of the growth of Fair Trade.

Backed by promoters, advocates and hundreds of thousands of volunteers all over the globe, Fair Trade has become the leading movement promoting social justice.

World Fair Trade Day was celebrated yesterday in six continents around the world, led by members of the World Fair Trade Organisation.

From the Pacific islands to the Andes, Palestine to Bangladesh, Mongolia to Kenya, seminars, hunger banquets, fairs, concerts and drumming, and Fair Trade fashion shows marked the day to celebrate 'Fair Trade People.' Every year, this is the biggest Fair Trade celebration on the planet.

Fair Trade is a transparent trading system that supports economically marginalised people, fair prices, good working conditions, and long-term partnership through trade.

Behind every Fair Trade product on the market there are real people. We tell their story through the WFTO Product Label, which was launched last year when the WFTO Membership approved the new WFTO Guarantee System.

Consumers and Fair Trade promoters are central to building the Fair Trade movement. By buying Fair Trade products, consumers have helped strengthen Fair Trade groups and supply chains, built a network of over 1,000 Fair Trade towns, cities and universities globally and put pressure on governments and big businesses to improve their business practices.

Fair Trade has improved the lives of several million small producers worldwide and their communities.

"Fair Trade was set up to enable producers, especially the smaller ones, to improve their livelihoods in a sustainable fashion. With the support of conscientious consumers, Fair Trade has grown to become a sustainable solution to fight poverty and economic crisis. Today, Fair Trade impacts not only producers but all of us, said WFTO Chief Executive Natália Leal.

"Fair Trade is a movement of the people, by the people and for the people. I have personally met thousands of people who have demonstrated how we can each make a difference," she said.