Fair trade Labeling has experienced very impressive growth rates over the last years, not only regarding the volume of sales worldwide but also in terms of the number of producer organizations joining the Fair Trade system. Here are some Fair Trade facts & figures:

• The Fair trade system currently works with over 1.65 million farmers and workers.
• There are 1,411 Fair Trade producer organizations across 73 countries.
• 23% of all Fair Trade farmers and workers are women.
• Fair trade products are now sold in more than 120 countries across the world with over 4,500 products available for purchase.
• The annual sales of Fair trade certified products amounted to 6.6 billion US dollars in 2011. Compared to non-Fair trade products this is not a lot, but Fair trade is growing fast – almost by 40 percent every year in the past 5 years.

The Fair Trade Mark is the most trusted ethical label in the United States, according to a 2015 Globescan study. Three in four US consumers have a positive perception of brands that carry the FairTrade Mark.

Chocolate & coffee have become synonymous with Fair trade with many brands becoming Fair Trade Certified, which means they must comply with a number of requirements, related to social, economic and environmental developments. In addition, labor conditions in these organizations must follow certain standards. There is still however a long way to go in encouraging customers to buy Fair trade with only a 0.5% share of the cocoa market.

India is touted to be one of the fastest growing markets for Fair trade. In 2017-18, eight new brands made a commitment to sourcing through Fairtrade-certified supply chains, taking the total number of Fairtrade certified brands in India to 17. The Fairtrade cotton market in India too is gaining visibility and new markets.

Of the 1,900 Fairtrade towns internationally, Puducherry and Auroville are on their way to becoming the first Fairtrade towns in India.

References:

• www.theworldcounts.com
• www.ethicalsuperstore.com
• www.thehindu.com
• www.fairtradeamerica.org
• www.ethicalsuperstore.com
• www1.uwe.ac.uk
• www.fairtradeamerica.org