Get your questions answered on Sep. 17!

Got questions about getting your products Fairtrade certified? Want to understand what partnership really gives you and your business?

Join us on Sep. 17 at 1 pm ET for a live 1-hour session with the experts on our Fairtrade America team! Whether your next sustainability step is analyzing risks or achieving certification for your key ingredients, learn how we can support your business on your journey toward fairer, more sustainable, and more resilient supply chains.

Preventing child labor and promoting child rights

Ethical and sustainable trade means protecting the human rights of the people behind our products, from the oldest to the youngest! Sadly, millions of children around the world are involved in the production of some of our most widely traded commodities. Take cocoa for example: An estimated 1.56 million children are involved in child labor in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, the countries that produce two-thirds of the world’s cocoa.

The chocolate bars we love shouldn’t come at the cost of young peoples' safety or opportunities for the future. Like so many social and environmental issues, poverty is an underlying cause of child labor. No parent wants their child to be forced to work rather than go to school, but the daily struggle to make ends meet is stark, especially for smallholder farmers.

Fairtrade is committed to fighting the root causes of child labor and forced labor and to promoting the rights of children. With that in mind, our work takes a holistic approach, drawing on three main mechanisms (see below!) to provide a range of benefits for farmers including:

• Contributing to improved farmer incomes
• Raising awareness of child rights
• Encouraging the development of opportunities for young people
• Channeling resources toward education, prevention, mitigation and remediation of child labor in their communities

By buying ingredients on Fairtrade terms, you become part of this important work!

What we're reading:

• Fairtrade International announces election of board members
• National Confectioners Association: State of Snacking 2024
• Whole Foods Market spotlights agricultural gains with 2nd annual impact report
• Cargill's Robey looks at navigating a climate-conscious world

Connect with us in person!

• Aug. 20-22 — ECRM’s Candy Planning Session – Fairtrade will have a booth at check-in. If you’ll be attending, be sure to come by for a chat and some swag!
• Aug. 25-28 — Newtopia Now - we'll have team members in Denver, and we'd love to chat! Let us know if your brand will be there.
• Nov. 17-19 — PLMA’s Private Label Trade Show – Fairtrade will have a booth in Chicago this November! Stop by for some Fairtrade swag and to learn more about highlighting your sustainability commitments through Fairtrade partnership.