What do you think of Fair Trade?

Fair Trade produce seems to be increasingly popular (for those who don't know, it essensially means that 3rd world farmers get a fair price from the people who buy their produce).
Almost everyone I know tries to buy Fair Trade coffee, tea and sometimes chocolate when they can.
All very commendable, but of course these products are more expensive, so it is obvious who is picking up the tab for this fair trade - the producers don't dent their profits!

Anyhow, supermarkets are always going on about how they are driving down prices which brings me to: how do they do this? They certainly don't cut their profit margins (except of "loss leader" items).
They do this by squeezing the producers and farmers.

I guess my point is: while we have Fair Trade coffee, tea, etc. to protect third world farmers, why don't we have fair trade milk (or whatever) to protect our own farmers? A recent survey has shown that UK dairy farmers are quitting because they can't make a profit. Apparently it costs them 17p to produce a litre, and they get paid 17 or 18p for that.

Almost everybody drinks milk, so I can't understand why the farmers can't get a decent price. Surely if they have something that people want, they can get a good price for it?

that is a good point mate. i'll rec it. can't see the waitrose-buying middle classes buying into it though. they'll make sure little jemina and jacob have fairtrade bananas, but i think they'll begrudge paying the extra to make sure our farmers earn a decent crust.

Its all of the large supermarket chains like Asda and Tesco and the competition between them; they keep their profit margins by costcutting farmers.
Each time they do a promotion they ask the farmers to participate, for example:
When they do a buy one get one free they ask the farmers to participate, so they halve their prices as well. Whilst the farmers do this the supermarket in question buys more than what would be sold, this way when products are put back to full price the supermarket still makes a profit but the farmer still loses out. The farmers don't have much choice as otherwise their harvest would go wasted.

Furthermore, to further aggrevate our farmers supermarkets send up to a quarter of the potatoes they get from farmers back (not paying for them) because they don't look good enough. Purely sauperficial really but it is causes the farmers a lot of problems.

Apart from supermarkets, where can you buy food?

I get organic vegetables & whole milk directly from the people who produce them. They set the price; it's not much more expensive than supermarket produce & tastes better.

Consumer choice is an important element in the mix, although many of them choose not to choose.

Originally posted by Bosse de Nage
Apart from supermarkets, where can you buy food?

I get organic vegetables & whole milk directly from the people who produce them. They set the price; it's not much more expensive than supermarket produce & tastes better.

Consumer choice is an important element in the mix, although many of them choose not to choose.

Originally posted by Bosse de Nage
Apart from supermarkets, where can you buy food?

I get organic vegetables & whole milk directly from the people who produce them. They set the price; it's not much more expensive than supermarket produce & tastes better.

Consumer choice is an important element in the mix, although many of them choose not to choose.

I always try to buy free range, my sister used to keep chickens and the flavour of the eggs from hand reared animals is so much better. I don't buy organic because of the price and quite frankly I don't see the point in it, but I do support Fair Trade. I am quite strict about what and where I eat (no McDonalds, Starbucks etc.) and I never use plastic bags if I can help it. If I absolutely have to I make sure I reuse tham nad recycle where possible.

Originally posted by Varg
All very commendable, but of course these products are more expensive, so it is obvious who is picking up the tab for this fair trade - the producers don't dent their profits!

If you're in the right area, you can get organic vegetables, fruit and milk delivered to your door weekly - http://www.rivernene.co.uk/en/find/index.php?

You don't get to choose what come in your box, but you get a good mix, and it encourages you to experiment, which is good.

Originally posted by Starrman
don't buy organic because of the price and quite frankly I don't see the point in it

Originally posted by Ragnorak
Who do you mean by the producers?

We sell all Fairtrade organic teas and coffees in our juice bar. It only works out a cent or 2 more per cup of coffee. Its well worth it considering you are giving a fair price to poor farmers, the produce isn't grown on large plantation which use chemicals willy nilly and its organic.

D

Originally posted by Varg
Actually I struggled for the right word here.
What I meant was the people who pay the farmers for their produce. I have no idea whether this is Kenco or Nescafe directly, or an intermediary, but that's who I meant.

Originally posted by Ragnorak
How do you mean you don't see the point? What does organic mean to you?

D

Originally posted by Starrman
I mean the stuff you see in Waitrose labelled with a big blue 'O' which costs three times as much os other fruit and veg. I'm more than happy to buy locally produced fruit and veg from the grocer for example and on occasion make it to a little farm a couple of miles out into the country where they do pick your own.

Fair Trade is:

The voluntary exchange of value for value.

If you cannot get what you feel is fair valuue in the exchange, don't do it. The whole thing gets skewed when gummints start meddling with sanctions, subsidies and price controls.