The East Bay Express Explores the Controversy Within the Fair Trade Movement
"Fair Trade USA's Coffee Policy Comes Under Fire"
Fair Trade USA's Coffee Policy Comes Under Fire
Critics say that new certification process adopted by Oakland-based organization will undermine the international fair-trade industry.
By Corey Hill
Fair Trade USA is the largest fair-trade certification agency in the United States. The decisions made at the organization's offices on Broadway in Oakland ripple throughout the national fair trade movement, and beyond to hundreds of thousands of farmers around the world. But since last fall, following Fair Trade USA's announcement of major policy changes, the organization has found itself at the center of a growing and often public debate about the future and shape of the fair-trade movement.
The focus of the controversy is Fair Trade USA's decision to start certifying coffee that is grown on large plantations. The organization says it hopes to expand fair-trade practices beyond the small farms and cooperatives that traditionally have won fair-trade certification. But the move has sparked a strong backlash in the fair-trade community, particularly among small farmers and co-ops who contend that larger plantations will eventually put them out of business.
Images courtesy Equal Exhange.
