Buy Fair Trade

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Buy Fair Trade Make Trade Fair
Information for public authorities
Peter Defranceschi - Sustainable Procurement team
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What does Fair Trade mean?

• Fair price for good work
• Environmentally sound healthy production
• Socially just work (no child labour)
• Stable, transparent and long-term partnership
• Dignity respect

Photo Credit Fairtrade Foundation
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Fair Trade also means...
Photo Fairtrade Austria

• Fair market access for poverty alleviation
  sustainable development.
• Guaranteed minimum wages prompt payment
• Financial assistance, when needed (pre-harvest or
  pre-production financing)
• Encouraging better environmental practices

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Why buy Fair Trade products?

• Contribution to sustainable development
• Effective alternative to development aid
• Helps to reduce poverty
• Helps to improve working conditions in the
  majority world

• Value for money
• Price differences are often small
• High quality products (e.g. Awards for Fair Trade
  coffee in Italy)

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Why buy Fair Trade products?

• Good image
• Fair Trade has very high recognition approval
  among the general public
• Attractive, stable and transparent market
• Rapidly expanding market
• From niche to the mass market
• highly transparent supply chain

Photo Fairtrade Austria
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Where can Fair Trade products be used?
Photo Credit Fairtrade Foundation

• Vending machines (coffee, tea, snacks)
• Canteens (offices, schools, hospitals)
• Catering (events, )
• Gifts (anniversaries, Christmas)

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Who checks Fair Trade products?
FLO Fairtrade Labelling Organizations
International is the worldwide Fairtrade standard
setting and certification organisation for
products. FLO comprises 21 national labelling
bodies (such as Max Havelaar (several countries)
Fairtrade Foundation (UK), Transfair Italia, etc)
www.fairtrade.net
IFAT The International Fair Trade Association
does not mark products but Fair Trade
organisations that identify and source products
directly from small producers and co-operatives,
and import and market them. www.ifat.org
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Good Practice Cities making a change!

• Barcelona - Vending machines
• At the Autonomous University of Barcelona,
  approximately 6,500 kilos of Fair Trade coffee
  are sold annually through 50 vending machines
  which are run by three dealer companies.
• Achievement Around 15 to 20 producer families
  in Chiapas/Mexico and Tanzania can make their
  living from the amount of coffee sold.

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Good Practice Cities making a change!

• Rome - School canteens
• In its technical specifications, Rome asked
  suppliers to supply one Fair Trade banana every
  week to each pupil.
• Achievement In Italian schools canteens public
  authorities serve at least 3 million kg of Fair
  Trade bananas per year.

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Good Practice Cities making a change!

• Vienna - Catering at EU Presidency
• For all events held relating to Austrias EU
  Presidency in 2006, the official caterer had to
  provide the organising ministry with the choice
  of offering Fair Trade Coffee, chocolate (cocoa),
  tea, and orange juice.
• Achievement A high number of ministries chose
  the Fair Trade option

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Good Practice Become a Fair Trade Town!

• Fair Trade Towns initiatives in UK, Ireland,
  Belgium , Italy
• Generally there are 5,6 Fair Trade goals to
  follow
• Resolution for Fairtrade coffee/tea at meetings
  in offices and canteens.
• Fairtrade products must be available in the
  areas shops/cafés catering establishments
• Fairtrade products must be used by a number of
  local work places organisations
• Attract media coverage and popular support for
  the campaign
• Local Fairtrade steering group to ensure
  continued commitment to the initiative

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Kick it off!
Become a Fair Trade champion!

• For more info on
• Buy Fair project
• www.iclei-europe.org/buyfair
• Fair Trade links
• FLO - www.fairtrade.net
• IFAT - www.ifat.org
• NEWS - www.worldshops.org
• EFTA - www.eftafairtrade.org

Fair Trade football Photo Fairtrade Austria
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The Buy Fair project

• Partner European Fair Trade Association
• Funded by the Dutch Ministry of Housing, Spatial
  Planning and the Environment (VROM)
• Objective To develop practical guidelines for
  public authorities in Europe wishing to purchase
  Fair Trade products
• Website www.iclei.europe.org/buyfair

Photo Credit Fairtrade Foundation