Use and Support Fair Trade Products

Rural woman from Brazil. Photo: Paul Jeffrey/ACT

Speak to your grocery store

Ask the manager at your local food stores to stock a wide range of fair trade goods. There is a tremendous range of fair trade commodities now available on the market. Besides coffees and it is also now possible to buy fair trade rice, chocolate, juices and other everyday household items. But often these commodities are not found in your neighborhood store, usually based on the perception that there is a lack of demand. Yes, fair trade commodities often cost more than commercially produced alternatives – but that is the point! Those of us who can afford to do so should spend that little bit more in order to put more food on the table for the communities and small farmers who are producing these fair trade products. When you pay less, but purchase from a major producer, the profit goes to the corporation, not the community.

Use Fair Trade coffees and teas

Around the world coffee and fellowship come together where we share community. A warm pot of coffee is often the centerpiece of fellowship hour and other gatherings. As the second most heavily traded commodity in the world after oil, coffee is a direct link between our community and farming communities in Latin America, Africa and Asia.

Yet the small farmers who grow our coffee often struggle just to make a simple living. Most live in rural communities in some of the poorest countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia. Isolated from markets, they are forced to accept low prices, which have dropped to historic lows due to a glut of producers entering the market. Without affordable credit, they become trapped in cycle of debt. Many lack access to adequate housing, healthcare and education.

But there is an alternative. In partnership with congregations Equal Exchange's Interfaith Coffee Program (http://www.equalexchange.com/interfaith/index.html) is a bridge between these communities and our own. Several member denominations of Church World Service are active participants in this program. By paying a fair price, working with democratic cooperatives, offering affordable credit and supporting sustainable agriculture, Equal Exchange helps farmers to build better lives for themselves and their families.

By serving Equal Exchange fairly traded coffee at your place of worship, you can share fellowship with our neighbors in coffee-growing countries, making a difference in their lives while enjoying a delicious cup of coffee. Through the program, farmers earn a fair price for their products, receive affordable credit, and gain a long-term trading partner that they can trust. By pooling their resources in democratic cooperatives, farmers are able to invest in training, health care, and agricultural improvements in their communities. Every cup you serve is a cup of justice.

Buy Fair Trade gifts

Serrv International (http://www.serrv.org/) is a non-profit alternative trade organization that promotes social and economic justice for people in developing regions of the world by marketing their handcrafts in a just and direct manner. Serrv’s newsletter keeps customers and friends of Serrv updated on the many products and projects that make up Serrv’s mission.

Learn More • Jubilee Debt Relief • Fair Trade Products • Fair Trade Petition • Related Links