Fair trade not helping workers who pick crops, study shows
Fair trade monitoring process questioned in wake of findings in Ethiopia and Uganda A new study of plantations in Ethiopia and Uganda found casual workers who pick the coffee may be paid less on Fair Trade-dominated farms than on larger plantations or areas without a Fair Trade designation. (Kent Gilbert/Associated Press) The Fair Trade certification movement asks consumers of coffee, tea, sugar and chocolate to pay a little more for the product to help the people who grow and pick the coffee to a better life. But a new report by an economist from the University of London finds the Fair Trade certification movement may not be living up to its billing. THE CURRENT: How fair is fair trade? Fair trade products hold their own during recession Christopher Cramer co-author of Fairtrade, Employment and Poverty Reduction in Ethiopia and Uganda studied 12 sites in Ethiopia in Uganda, comparing the wages of hired labour in areas with large plantations, areas with small f