LFTN and the Agricultural Justice Project Partner in the Creation of a Domestic Fair Trade Label

In the Summer of 2006, the Local Fair Trade Network and the Agricultural Justice Project agreed to join forces in the creation of a Domestic Fair Trade label. Two co-ops and five farms in the Upper Midwest will serve as the subjects of a pilot project that will develop a certification process for the standards developed by AJP, as well as refine those standards. The goal of the pilot project is to have certified Fair Trade products from those farms in co-ops during the growing season of 2007. LFTN and AJP are seeking input on the standards, how the label should be marketed, as well as the governance of the Domestic Fair Trade system.

Background

LFTN started in 2001 with meetings of farmers, food co-ops and Fair Trade importers hoping to replicate the success of international Fair Trade in our region, the Upper Midwest. Creation of a Fair Trade labeling system was on the agenda from the start, and work on standards for such a system started immediately. Eventually, we became aware of standards developed under the title “Toward Social Justice and Economic Equity in the Food System." This document, developed by organic farmer Elizabeth Henderson, Richard Mandelbaum of CATA/Farm Worker Support Committee, Oscar Mendieta of the Association of Organizations of Ecological Producers of Bolivia and Michael Sligh of the Rural Advancement Foundation International-USA in consultation with farmers, farm workers and NGO’s internationally. LFTN recognized the immense value of this document and decided use it as the basis for our own regional labeling system.

We created Local Fair Trade Pledges (one for farmers and one for retailers), based on a very simplified version of theses standards. The idea was for farmers and retail co-ops to pledge to practice Fair Trade in advance of the creation of a certification system. Part of the pledge was a commitment to democratically creating this certification system. We also developed a logo and other elements for point-of-sale materials to publicize the label in stores.

In the meantime, the authors of the “Toward Social Justice…" document formalized themselves as the Agricultural Justice Project and recruited an advisory panel, including then-LFTN steering committee chair T.J. Semanchin.

Merging of Efforts

In the summer of 2006, LFTN hosted a visit by AJP to the Upper Midwest. During this visit, AJP proposed a joining of forces. The plan encompassed AJP handling the standards and certification for a labeling pilot project while LFTN would provide connections to local farms and retailers, allowing certified Domestic Fair Trade product from a small number of farms to appear on the shelves in the summer of 2007. LFTN regarded this plan as a unique opportunity to move quickly toward certification and to allow each organization to focus on the part of the project most appropriate to their strengths.

The Seward Co-op and The Wedge Co-op have both gone through an initial site visit by AJP (The Wedge has since temporarily suspended their participation pending further review by their board of directors). The following farms from our region will also be participating in the pilot from the producer end: Featherstone Fruits and Vegetables in Rushford, MN; Riverbend Farm in Delano, MN; Harmony Valley Farm in Viroqua, WI; and Keewaydin Farms and Avalanche Organics, both in Viola, WI.

Look for certified Domestic Fair Trade products to appear on the shelves this spring. We are working to expand the labeling program after the 2007 season as rapidly as funding allows. Sign up for our newsletter to receive updates as they became available.

Please contact LFTN at info@localfairtrade.org with any questions or comments.