Fair Trade Advocacy

Impact Assessment Studies >

“Fair Trade teaches us that consumers are not condemned to be only bargain-hunters… Fair Trade reminds us that trade is about people, their livelihoods, their families, sometimes their survival.”

(Peter Mandelson – European Commissioner for External Trade)

More than one million producers and workers in developing countries benefit from Fair Trade terms. The Fair Trade movement constantly reviews and improves its trading and business practice to further benefit particularly the small and marginalised producers and poor workers. The impact is achieved thanks to a comprehensive approach to trading, combining fair trading conditions with producer support, awareness raising and advocacy for greater trade justice. A great number of impact assessment studies has been carried out by research institutes, development agencies and Fair Trade Organisations themselves. Some of these studies are available below. For further information please contact efta “at” antenna.nl

The impact of Fair Trade is not limited to the south. Fair Trade Organisations have pioneered responsible business practices and encouraged consumers to take the social, economic and environmental conditions of their purchasing into account. The impressive growth and success of Fair Trade shows that ever more consumers care about the conditions of production: Over the last years, Fair Trade sales have grown by 20% to 30% per year throughout Europe, reaching around 2 billion € in 2006. This demand has been a significant lever for change in business practices of conventional companies as well. Fair Trade has been a driving force for responsible business practices.

Etude de l'impact sur les cultivateurs de café en Bolivie

A comparative study of Fair Trade on the growersof coffee in the Yugas of Bolivia. The researchers found conclusions at three level; the family, producers' organisations, and the region - development and investments.

Nicolas Eberhart. 2006. Agronomes et Vétérinaires sans frontieres
Available at: www.maxhavelaar.be/files/u2/Synthese_etude_d_impact-Bolivie_2005.pdf

Revaluing Peasant Coffee Production: Organic and Fair Trade Markets in Mexico

The study suggests that an internationally coordinated effort to re-regulate the market is needed to stabilize prices and raise them to remunerative levels – at least to current FT prices. The findings suggest several areas in which policy reform could contribute to the important goal of revaluing the contributions of small-scale coffee farmers in Mexico. They fall in three broad categories: reforms within the niche markets themselves; policy reforms at the national level in Mexico; and international reforms to better manage the imbalance between supply and demand.

Muriel Calo and Timothy A. Wise. 2005. Global Development and Environment Institute. Tufts University.
Available at : http://ase.tufts.edu/gdae/pubs/rp/RevaluingCoffee05.pdf

E-Commerce for Development. The Case of Nepalese Artisan Exporters

The study focuses on the efficacy of CatGen in emerging economies, particularly those in which the benefit of artisans and merchants who are readily familiar with technology is rare. The scope of the study evaluates CatGen in terms of ease of use, feasibility in areas with limited Internet access, affordability, scalability, return on investment, user responses, benefits and drawbacks, and a comprehensive comparison of the platform against leading competitors. Case studies of several typical CatGen users are provided.

UNDP, 2005
Available at : http://sdnhq.undp.org/e-gov/e-comm/nepal-artisans-exec-summ.pdf

One Cup at a Time: Poverty Alleviation and Fair Trade in Latin America

The report focuses on issues at the level of production. It offers recommendations intended to lead to or accompany actions by the FT movement and others. It suggests: to further study the dynamics of the Northern FT market, that collaborative research should be initiated on emerging direct marketing strategies and combined certification and labeling efforts; to develop collaborative research across FT commodity areas in support of greater coordination of organizational and market strategies.

Douglas Murray, Laura T. Raynolds and Peter Leigh Taylor. 2003. Fair Trade Research Group, Colorado State University.
Available at: http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/Sociology/FairTradeResearchGroup/doc/fairtrade.pdf

Signé Max Havelaar -Regards sur les Résultats du commerce équitable

In 2003, the Belgian market had eight Max Havelaar FT certified products: coffee, chocolate, bananas, tea, rice, juices, sugar and honey. This impact assessment study focused on examples for each products of cooperatives working with Belgian partners. They highlight the efforts made to reinforce capacity-building of southern producers.

Only available in French
Max Havelaar. 2003
Available at: http://www.maxhavelaar.com/fr/webimages/IMPACTFR.pdf

Poverty Alleviation through Participation in Fair Trade Coffee Networks

The report provides a synthesis of seven case studies. All seven cooperatives have complex organizational dynamics that have benefited greatly from FT but which go far beyond participation in the system. The experience with FT varies widely across the cooperatives studied, ranging from FT paragons and outspoken promoters of the movement to unwilling outcasts and reluctant critics. Nevertheless, each of these cases might be said to represent examples of organizational success, as they have each survived considerable adversity to emerge as resilient organizations and proponents of the interests of their members.

Taylor,Peter leigh. 2002. Fair Trade Research Group,Colorado State University
Available at : http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/Sociology/FairTradeResearchGroup/doc/pete.pdf

Fair Trade: Overview, Impact, Challenges. Study to Inform DFID's Support to Fair Trade

The study is based on a review of experience with FT based on available literature and interviews. It focuses on FT in cocoa and coffee, with examples drawn from FT cocoa in Ghana and coffee in Tanzania. It examines each initiative in the context of a broader overview of the characteristics of the international and UK market for each commodity. The study reaches the conclusion that FT has increased pressure towards the broader adoption of ethical codes of conduct by mainstream processors and retailers. The most important impact is likely to be through successfully enhancing the capacity of representative producer organisations to engage on more favourable terms in trading relationships.

Oxford Policy management, sustainable markets Group and International Institute for Environment & Development, 2000
Available at: http://www.opml.co.uk/docs/ACF3C8C.pdf