From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fairtrade Town is a status awarded by a recognized Fairtrade certification body (i.e. the Fairtrade Foundation in the UK, TransFair Canada in Canada etc.) describing an area which is committed to the promotion of Fairtrade certified goods. By extension, the organizations also awards the statuses of Fairtrade City, Fairtrade Village, Fairtrade Zone, Fairtrade Borough, Fairtrade Island, Fairtrade County and Fairtrade University.

See List of Fairtrade settlements for a list of current Fairtrade settlements.

Contents 1 History 2 Criteria 3 Other initiatives 3.1 Fairtrade country 4 See also 5 References 6 External links

The Fairtrade Town campaign was first launched in 2001 in Garstang, Lancashire, under the initiative of Bruce Crowther, a local Oxfam supporter, and the Garstang Oxfam Group. The initiative, which aimed to promote Fairtrade certified goods in the town, was highly successful: within a couple of months, awareness of the Fairtrade Mark jumped to over 70% in the town while sales of Fairtrade certified goods increased significantly. Moreover, over the course of the campaign, Garstang developed links with Fairtrade cocoa farming communities in West Africa, which led to the twin town relationship with New Koforidua, Ghana.^[1]

As the activities at Garstang gained wider notoriety, the Fairtrade Foundation launched a set of Fairtrade Town Goals and an Action Guide to encourage others to follow in the town's success. During the 2001-2006 period, over 209 British towns were awarded the Fairtrade status by the Fairtrade Foundation.

In an attempt to replicate the success of the Fairtrade Foundation's Fairtrade Town program, a Europe-wide program called "Fairtrade Towns in Europe", part-funded by the European Commission, was launched jointly by several Fairtrade labelling initiatives. There are currently Fairtrade Towns in Belgium, France, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States.

In November 2006, the first ever European Fairtrade Towns conference was hosted at London Southbank University. The goals of the conference were to

• identify and develop procedures to strengthen the links within and between local communities and private and public organisations;
• develop strategies to enable the UK Fairtrade Towns model to meet the requirements of each individual country.

Formal guidelines have been produced jointly by several FLO member Fairtrade labelling initiatives. In order to be awarded Fairtrade status, an area must meet five criteria:

• Local council passes a resolution supporting Fairtrade, and agrees to serve Fairtrade tea and coffee at its meetings and in its offices and canteens.
• A range of (at least two) Fairtrade products is readily available in the area’s shops and local cafés/catering establishments.
  • Target for number of retail outlets: population of < 10000 - 1 retail outlet per 2500; population < 200000 - 1 retail outlet per 5000; population of < 500000 - 1 retail outlet per 10000.
  • Target for number of catering outlets: population of < 10000 - 1 catering outlet per 5000; population < 200000 - 1 catering outlet per 10000; population of < 500000 - 1 catering outlet per 20000
• Fairtrade products are used by a number of local work places (estate agents, hairdressers etc) and community organisations (churches, schools etc)
• Attract media coverage and popular support for the campaign.
• A local Fairtrade steering group is convened to ensure continued commitment to its Fairtrade Town status.

In 2002 The Wales Fair Trade Forum, a network of development NGOs and Fair Trade campaigners, began working to make Wales the world's first Fair Trade country. The idea was based upon the Fairtrade Town scheme run by the Fairtrade Foundation in the UK. In 2005 The Welsh Assembly Government agreed to back the idea and in 2006 Fair Trade groups from Scotland and Wales agreed the criteria for becoming a Fair Trade country.

Work is now underway in both Scotland and Wales to make Fair Trade goods widely available, to raise public awareness and to have active Fair Trade groups in every corner of each country. More details can be found at Fairtradewales.com.

The draft criteria for a "Fair Trade Nation" are:[1]

• 75% of the population should purchase a Fair Trade product every year.
• 40% of people regularly buy Fair Trade products.
• All local authorities have active Fair Trade groups working towards Fairtrade status.
• 55 per cent local authority areas with Fair Trade status with 10% annual increase in following years

Fair trade topics	Fair trade | History of fair trade | Fairtrade certification | Fair trade and politics | Fair trade impact studies | Fair trade debate | Alternative trading organization | Trade justice | Trade Justice Movement | Sweatshops | Worldshop
Federations	Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International | International Fair Trade Association | Network of European Worldshops | European Fair Trade Association | FINE | Fair Trade Federation
Certification	FLO International (standard-setting & producer support) | FLO-CERT (inspection & certification) | International Fairtrade Certification Mark | Fair Trade Certified Mark
Campaigns	Fairtrade Town | List of Fairtrade settlements | Fairtrade fortnight | Make Trade Fair | World Fair Trade Day
Resources	Black Gold (film) | One Cup (film)

Fairtrade labelling members

Africa Fairtrade Network | Asociación del Sello de Productos de Comercio Justo | Comercio Justo México | Fair Trade Association of Australia and New Zealand | Fairtrade Österreich | Fairtrade Mark Ireland | The Fairtrade Foundation | Latin American and Caribbean Network of Small Fair Trade Producers | Max Havelaar Belgique | Association Max Havelaar France | Max Havelaar Danmark | Stichting Max Havelaar | Fairtrade Max Havelaar Norge | Max Havelaar-Stiftung Switzerland | Network of Asian Producers | Reilun kaupan edistämisyhdistys | Rättvisemärkt | TransFair Canada | TransFair Deutschland | TransFair Italia | TransFair Japan | TransFair-Minka Luxembourg | TransFair USA

• Max Havelaar Belgium - information on the campaign in Belgium
• Max Havelaar France - information on the campaign in France
• Fairtrade Ireland - information on the campaign in Ireland
• TransFair Italia - information on the campaign in Italy
• Fairtrade Max Havelaar Norge - information on the campaign in Norway
• Rättvisemärkt - information on the campaign in Sweden
• Fairtrade Foundation - information on the campaign in the UK
• Garstang - "the world's first Fairtrade Town"