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Fair Trade – Why Is It Important?The "fair trade" label is seen more and more often on imported goods. You maysee that some of the coffee in your gourmet food store is "fairly traded." You may seetextiles and crafts for sale on the web advertised as being "fair trade" products.Bedding,  table linens, and other home décor may advertise itself as "fair trade." But what does"fair trade" mean exactly? Fair trade is an approach to marketing that incorporates the principles of environmentally sustainable development and humane wages and workingconditions. It is a movement in the production and marketing of goods that insists thatthe producer of a product should receive a living wage for his or her work and thatcommerce should be done with the intent of protecting environmental conditions for future generations. The fair trade movement is firmly opposed to the use of child labor,slave labor or harsh sweatshop conditions. Importers of fair trade goods work directlywith the small businesses, cooperatives and community-based organizations that grow or  produce the fair trade items, thereby cutting out layers of middlemen. Removing layersof middlemen and corporate profits ensures that, although the workers creating the goodsget a living wage, the retail prices for fair trade items are comparable to products that arenot fair trade.In determining a living wage, the fair trade community gives consideration to thelocality in which the products are made. If the local country has a minimum wage law,the wages for fair trade products will at least match it. Sometimes, however, a legalminimum wage is less than a living wage. Where that is the case, the fair trade producer will receive more than the law requires. Fair trade workers organize themselves intocooperatives or other participatory workplaces. That way, each worker can have a say inlocal issues, such as working hours and conditions. The cooperatives often takeinitiatives with respect to other worker benefits, such as health care, child care andeducation. Some cooperatives can provide loans, training and other assistance to workersas they set up their own small businesses. Fair trade cooperatives will often work toimprove conditions in the community. Up to 70% the workers empowered and assisted by fair trade cooperatives are women, many of whom are mothers and the sole wageearners for their families.A living wage and decent working conditions are one of the two founding principles of the fair trade movement. The other founding principle is environmentalsustainability. Fair trade coffee and cocoa cooperatives require their members to usesustainable agricultural methods and to grow organic agricultural products. Textileworkers make raw materials using environmentally sustainable methods such asvegetable dyes and organic cotton and hemp. Some fair trade cooperatives have soughtout producers in geographical regions with rich biodiversity and developed products thatuse the local resources in a sustainable way.In addition to a living wage for their producers and an environmentallysustainable approach to commerce, fair trade enterprises also give importance to other social issues. For example, fair trade artisans often use traditional crafts and skills in
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