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| Science Forum Index » Economy Forum » Crafting a Market for Fair Trade |
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| Dan Clore |
 Posted: Sun Nov 20, 2005 5:12 pm |
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News & Views for Anarchists & Activists:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/smygo
Crafting a Market for Fair Trade
Retailer Targets Christmas Rush, Suppliers' Well-Being
By Sharda Vaidyanath
Epoch Times Ottawa Staff
Nov 17, 2005
Lacquerware river rocks from Vietnam and cotton Kalamkari
block-print textiles from India are a few examples of
ancient village craftsmanship resuscitated through "fair
trading." Slowly but surely, fair trade is redefining North
American markets towards global social change.
Ten Thousand Villages has been a bellwether, and its annual
Christmas craft "festival sale" opened to a capacity crowd
in Ottawa this month, as more Canadians than ever are
shopping for fair trade goods.
Ten Thousand Villages is a non-profit project of the
Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), a relief and development
agency of the Mennonite Church that has showcased its fair
trade practices in the developing world for more than 20
years. "Self-help," the MCC says, is the solution to global
poverty.
The idea of supporting artisans' work and environments
through equitable trading relations has a long history.
Seeds of the fair trade movement were sown in the
Netherlands in 1988, and simultaneously influenced North
American consumer activism in the 1980s. The goal was to
help consumers understand and take responsibility for food
products they buy, particularly in connection to exploited
farmers in third-world countries.
The origins of Ten Thousand Villages crafts go back to 1946
and Edna Ruth Byler, who sold the embroidery work of Puerto
Rican women in Pennsylvania. Since then, the idea of
encouraging self-help -- particularly for poor women and the
disabled -- matured and developed North American markets for
third-world artisans, many of whom would otherwise be
unemployed and destitute. The income earned through sales of
their handiwork pays for basic needs of food, shelter,
education, and healthcare. In 1996, Ten Thousand Villages
began operations in Canada, and today it is one of the
largest and oldest alternative trading organizations in
North America, says Anita Streicher, manager of the
company's Ottawa store.
The MCC's emphasis on sustainability of indigenous peoples'
livelihood and environment developed through long-term trade
relations with artisans in Bangladesh, India, Vietnam, and
elsewhere. Today, Mennonites' efforts offer Canadians a
shopping experience in fair trade practices and their
benefits to global society.
Fair trade is an alternative to conventional international
trade with developing nations that emphasizes improvement in
the suppliers' quality of life.
The International Federation for Alternative Trade (IFAT)
grants "Fair Trade" accreditation, either through a
voluntary self-evaluation process (which measures adherence
to fair trade principles for trade in non-standardized
goods, such as crafts) or through certification for the use
of IFAT logo in for-profit sales of food products such as
coffee, sugar, rice, and cocoa (for which objective criteria
apply). Ottawa-based TransFair Canada, a Canadian
International Development Agency partner, handles
certification applications for IFAT and currently has 150
licensed Canadian companies selling products for profit.
The idea of sustainability is central to fair trade
practices. This is achieved through payment of fair wages,
consistent long-term purchasing, and reinforcing rich
cultural traditions that are also environmentally sensitive.
Meanwhile, child labour, prison labour, sweatshops, and
depletion of natural resources are forbidden; some war-torn
countries in Africa, for example, and some countries with
totalitarian regimes are therefore ineligible as trading
partners.
Ten Thousand Villages does not buy from China, says
Executive Director Marv Frey, because "The Canadian public
is aware of the sweatshop factor . . . in the minds of many
consumers there's a question mark."
"We actually have people on the ground that go and visit the
artisans' groups to determine if they are abiding by fair
trade rules," says Monica Scheifele, who is coordinating the
November festival sale in Ottawa. "In China it is impossible
to do that."
Approved artisans receive a 50 percent advance for purchase
of materials and living expenses, and 50 percent after
crafts are delivered for sale. In recognition of financial
support needed for uninterrupted supply of goods, all
transactions are in hard currency. Artisans are not
penalized for goods not sold or damaged in transit to Canada.
There are 120 artisan groups, with 60,000 artisans in 30
countries, who sell their crafts to Ten Thousand Villages.
The artisan community determines fair prices collectively.
Fair trade emphasizes quality, fair prices, and a "cultural
touch" through direct dealing with artisans. There is
background cultural information about each product sold by
Ten Thousand Villages; invariably, it is a story of
struggle, survival, and salvaged cultural heritage, compiled
through longstanding relationships with members of the
Mennonite Church in many countries.
Ten Thousand Villages has a mandate to be self-sustaining at
every level. The organization has a store profitability goal
of 5 percent of sales in order to achieve long-term
stability. "The warehouse and retail outlets rely heavily on
volunteers," says Streicher. "Only managers get paid; that
way we keep our costs down."
There are currently 42 Ten Thousand Villages stores in
Canada, with sales of C$12 million for the fiscal year
ending in February 2006. Their emphasis is not on
competition "because we are a marketing opportunity for
third-world artisans," says Streicher.
Ten Thousand Villages' "festival sale" will run through
remaining weekends in November in cities across North America.
--
Dan Clore
My collected fiction, _The Unspeakable and Others_:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1587154838/thedanclorenecro/
Lord We˙rdgliffe & Necronomicon Page:
http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/9879/
News & Views for Anarchists & Activists:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/smygo
Strange pleasures are known to him who flaunts the
immarcescible purple of poetry before the color-blind.
-- Clark Ashton Smith, "Epigrams and Apothegms" |
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| Jim Blair |
| Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 1:07 pm |
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Guest
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"Dan Clore" <clore@columbia-center.org> wrote in message
news:3ucamoF10j97iU1@individual.net...
[quote:62a0bc6c5f]News & Views for Anarchists & Activists:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/smygo
Crafting a Market for Fair Trade
Retailer Targets Christmas Rush, Suppliers' Well-Being
By Sharda Vaidyanath
Epoch Times Ottawa Staff
Nov 17, 2005
Lacquerware river rocks from Vietnam and cotton Kalamkari
block-print textiles from India are a few examples of
ancient village craftsmanship resuscitated through "fair
trading." Slowly but surely, fair trade is redefining North
American markets towards global social change.
Ten Thousand Villages has been a bellwether, and its annual
Christmas craft "festival sale" opened to a capacity crowd
in Ottawa this month, as more Canadians than ever are
shopping for fair trade goods.
[/quote:62a0bc6c5f]
.....
[quote:62a0bc6c5f]..... In 1996, Ten Thousand Villages
began operations in Canada, and today it is one of the
largest and oldest alternative trading organizations in
North America, says Anita Streicher, manager of the
company's Ottawa store.
....
Fair trade is an alternative to conventional international
trade with developing nations that emphasizes improvement in
the suppliers' quality of life.
[/quote:62a0bc6c5f]
Hi,
As a supporter of "free trade" I,m all for this kind of "fair trade". It
is not an "alternative" to "conventional international trade" but rather is
a subdivision of it.
Ten Thousand Villages is just another brand name, as "Organic" has become
for food. It even has its own corporate logo.
I hear that Starbucks (and others) now sell "Fair Trade" coffee. It has
become another brand name, like Maxwell House.
[quote:62a0bc6c5f]
The International Federation for Alternative Trade (IFAT)
grants "Fair Trade" accreditation, either through a
voluntary self-evaluation process (which measures adherence
to fair trade principles for trade in non-standardized
goods, such as crafts) or through certification for the use
of IFAT logo in for-profit sales of food products such as
coffee, sugar, rice, and cocoa (for which objective criteria
apply). Ottawa-based TransFair Canada, a Canadian
International Development Agency partner, handles
certification applications for IFAT and currently has 150
licensed Canadian companies selling products for profit.
Ten Thousand Villages' "festival sale" will run through
remaining weekends in November in cities across North America.
--
Dan Clore
My collected fiction, _The Unspeakable and Others_:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1587154838/thedanclorenecro/
Lord We˙rdgliffe & Necronomicon Page:
http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/9879/
News & Views for Anarchists & Activists:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/smygo
Strange pleasures are known to him who flaunts the
immarcescible purple of poetry before the color-blind.
-- Clark Ashton Smith, "Epigrams and Apothegms"
[/quote:62a0bc6c5f]
,,,,,,,
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jim blair (jeblair@wisc.edu) Madison Wisconsin USA.
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No animals were harmed in making this post |
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