As large, mainstream companies and retailers begin to offer Fair Trade Certified products, is there a danger that the Fair Trade standards will erode?
The standards will not erode. Fair Trade standards are established by Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO) and address social and economic development, environmental management, and labor conditions on Fair Trade farms. For example, the Fair Trade standards require that producer groups receive the established Fair Trade floor price for their products. Therefore, all US companies licensed to sell Fair Trade Certified products must pay Fair Trade floor prices to Fair Trade farmer groups for those products. TransFair USA, the only independent certifier of Fair Trade products in the US, verifies industry compliance with the Fair Trade criteria. FLO uses a multi-stakeholder process to set the Fair Trade standards. Fair Trade producer networks, workers, Alternative Trade Organizations (ATOs), conventional traders, Labeling Initiatives (including TransFair USA), and independent consultants specializing in Fair Trade and labor issues are all involved in the standards approval
