"Before you've finished your breakfast this morning, you'll have relied on half the world" - Martin Luther King
An interesting thought. And a depressing one, when you realise that those people you've relied on for your coffee and muesli are almost certainly being exploited and oppressed by the unfair power balance in world trade. But what can you do? Surely it's beyond your control? Wrong. You can buy Fair Trade products. The term “fair trade” describes a system of commerce that promotes a sustainable environment, labour rights, a good wage and healthy working conditions for labourers as well as their families and communities. Fair Trade is a growing, international movement which ensures that producers in poor countries get a fair deal. This means a fair price for their goods (one that covers the cost of production and guarantees a living income), long-term contracts which provide real security; and for many, support to gain the knowledge and skills that they need to develop their businesses and increase sales.
Fairtrade is about better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability, and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world. By requiring companies to pay sustainable prices, Fairtrade addresses the injustices of conventional trade, which traditionally discriminates against the poorest, weakest producers. It enables them to improve their position and have more control over their lives.
The basic principles of fair trade include:
•A fair, living wage for labourers
•Direct trade that eliminates middlemen
•Safe, healthy working conditions
•Respect for cultural identity
•Opportunities for marginalized communities
Today, the variety of fair trade goods that are available has exploded. In addition to coffee and tea, consumers can now buy fair trade:
•Sugar and spices •Dried fruits and nuts •Chocolate and cocoa •Rice, quinoa and other grains •Fruit juices and honey •Wine •Fresh fruits and vegetables •Cotton and cotton clothing
•Artwork, apparel and handicrafts
Fair trade goods aren’t the cheapest items on the shelf -- fair trade coffee, for example, usually isn’t as inexpensive as commercially grown coffee, but its price is similar to that of gourmet coffees. Market research has confirmed that many consumers are willing to pay more for fair trade as well as organic and other high-quality sustainable products. Proponents of fair trade goods say that any additional price is a reflection of the many benefits of the products: environmental protection, better and safer working conditions, and access to health care and education for workers and their families. Discover a range of Fair Trade at the Makers and Finders Marketplace in Murwillumbah
"Kabla ya kumaliza kiamsha kinywa chako asubuhi, utakuwa umegundua nusu ya ulimwengu. - Martin Luther King, Jr." "Na moja ya kusikitisha, wakati unafahamu kwamba watu hao ambao umegemea kwa kahawa yako na muesli ni karibu hakika kuwa ni kutumiwa na kukandamizwa na usawa wa nguvu usio wa haki katika biashara ya dunia. """ Lakini unaweza kufanya nini? Bila shaka hilo haliwezi kulidhibiti? Si kweli. Unaweza kununua bidhaa za Biashara ya Haki. "Jina ""biashara ya haki"" linaelezea mfumo wa biashara ambayo inakuza mazingira endelevu, haki za kazi, mshahara mzuri na hali nzuri ya kazi kwa wafanyakazi na familia zao na jamii." Biashara ya Haki ni harakati inayoongezeka, ya kimataifa ambayo inahakikisha kwamba wazalishaji katika nchi maskini hupata mpango wa haki. Hii inamaanisha bei ya haki kwa bidhaa zao (ambayo inashughulikia gharama za uzalishaji na kuhakikisha mapato ya kuishi), mikataba ya muda mrefu ambayo hutoa usalama halisi, na kwa wengi, msaada wa kupata maarifa na ujuzi wanaohitaji kuendeleza biashara zao na kuongeza mauzo. Biashara ya haki inahusu bei bora, hali nzuri za kazi, uendelevu wa ndani, na masharti ya biashara ya haki kwa wakulima na wafanyakazi katika nchi zinazoendelea. Kwa kulazimisha makampuni kulipa bei endelevu, Fairtrade inashughulikia ukosefu wa haki wa biashara ya kawaida, ambayo kwa kawaida inabaguzi wazalishaji maskini na dhaifu. Inawawezesha kuboresha msimamo wao na kuwa na udhibiti zaidi juu ya maisha yao. "Mafunzo ya msingi ya biashara ya haki ni pamoja na: ""Mshahara wa haki, wa kuishi kwa wafanyakazi, biashara ya moja kwa moja ambayo huondoa wa kati, hali salama na afya ya kazi, kuheshimu utambulisho wa kitamaduni, fursa kwa jamii zilizopo nje ya biashara ya haki, na aina ya bidhaa zinazopatikana.""" Kwa mfano, bidhaa za biashara ya haki sio vitu vya bei nafuu kwenye rafu - kahawa ya biashara ya haki, kwa mfano, kwa kawaida si ya bei nafuu kama kahawa iliyopandwa kibiashara, lakini bei yake ni sawa na kahawa ya gourmet. Utafiti wa soko umethibitisha kuwa watumiaji wengi wako tayari kulipa zaidi kwa biashara ya haki na pia bidhaa za kikaboni na bidhaa nyingine za hali ya juu za kudumu. Wafuasi wa biashara ya haki wanasema kwamba bei yoyote ya ziada ni kuonyesha faida nyingi za bidhaa: ulinzi wa mazingira, hali bora na salama ya kazi, na upatikanaji wa huduma za afya na elimu kwa wafanyakazi na familia zao. Gundua aina ya Biashara ya Haki katika Makers na Finders Marketplace katika Murwillumbah