Why is fair trade important?

“Fair trade” refers to a movement or an implementation guideline in terms of trading between producers from developing countries and buyers from other more developed or industrialized nations. It basically pertains to the fair treatment of all the people or groups of people involved in international trading. This is especially applicable to poor and developing countries with farmers and producers that get what is considered fair prices for their goods. The basic goal of the Fair Trade Movement around the world is to protect poor farmers and producers and give them what they deserve in terms of better prices for their goods, a sustainable working environment, a good and safe working environment, and a greater chance of elevating their standards of living. With all these benefits that are provided to poor farmers, for example, fair trade is considered a very important process or movement to implement across the globe.

The main concept of fair trade is to classify goods provided by poorer countries to industrialized nations as fair-trade products. With the label ‘fair-trade product’ consumers will at least know that the people who produced or farmed specific goods are paid well enough and given the benefits that are due to them. Without fair trade agreements, various large companies in rich nations could take advantage of the poor countries and pay low prices for goods or raw materials that are produced. If this particular scenario is left untouched, it will just result in a cycle wherein the big businesses will get their products at low prices while the farmers and producers from poor countries will not have a chance to improve their living standards. Many of these farmers will live from day to day with whatever they earn from their jobs. But with fair trade agreements and labeling of products, businesses that get their raw materials and other goods from smaller countries are required to buy the goods at a price that is supposedly fair to the local farmers and producers. In this way, poor farmers will have better pay and a brighter future ahead in terms of their jobs and standards of living.