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You will likely have seen the Fairtrade mark on several products at your local supermarket, but do you know how this concept is improving the lives of millions of people around the world?

What is the Fairtrade Movement?

The Fairtrade organisation allows consumers greater possibilities to give small-scale farmers the opportunity to earn the wage they deserve. This movement has empowered farmers in developing countries and there are currently 1,226 Fairtrade certified organisations in 74 different countries.

Established in 1992, the aim of this organisation is to create a world in which workers receive a fair wage for the jobs that they do. This of course better enables them to create a stable future for themselves and their families. As they promote, encourage and enable fairer trading standards and conditions, this is a movement that has the potential to instigate change at every level.

How the Fairtrade Movement Works

By working with both businesses and the famers who produce and supply the products, the Fairtrade organisation is striving to eradicate exploitation and poverty among those who are involved.

In order to be certified as Fairtrade, a company will have to meet the expectations set out by the Fairtrade organisation. These expectations relate to the economic, the social, and the environmental standards of how the the farm operates and how the workers are treated.

When it comes to the farmers and the workers, these standards work to uphold their rights as well as to protect their financial interests. It is also Fairtrade policy that the farmers involved will receive what is known as a Fairtrade Premium, which is an additional payment that they then use to invest in local community projects. This means that it is not just the workers of individual farms that benefit, but the wider community on the whole.

The organisation has a process in place to investigate the entire production process, from farm to retailer, in order to establish if their standards are being met. If this is found to be the case then the product in question is then entitled to use the Fairtrade mark on the packaging of their product.

What is Included?

Both final products and food ingredients can be certified as being Fairtrade. If a finished product carries the Fairtrade mark then this means that all of the ingredients used in this product meet these standards.

There are approximately 4,500 Fairtrade products, with some of the most common everyday items being:

• Bananas
• Coffee
• Cotton
• Sugar
• Tea
• Cocoa

How Fairtrade is Making a Difference

An increase in conscious consumerism has led to shoppers making more sustainable choices in regards to a wide range of items. This can be seen to range from their food choices to the fabrics that they purchase when it comes to their clothes. This desire for a fairer world has further fuelled the Fairtrade movement, with more than 1.65 million farmers and workers currently being certified Fairtrade producers.

Gender equality is one concept that this movement has helped to not only draw attention to, but also to improve in parts of the world where this divide is especially apparent. As it stands today, 26% of all Fairtrade workers and farmers are women, with 48% of those women working within the plantations themselves.

Sustainability for a Better Future

The Fairtrade movement is helping to create a more sustainable future for the workers and also to educate local people about sustainable farming practices. In fact, protecting the environment is one of the key features of the organisation. In order to be eligible to call themselves Fairtrade producers, farmers must comply with certain sustainable farming practices. They can also receive training on environmentally friendly farming methods.

Want to read more about this incredible concept and the great work they do? Click here to head to their website now!

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There are several ways that you can lower your impact on the environment, such as through purchasing clothes made from sustainable fabrics. In addition to your wardrobe, you can also look to your plate to find ways to decrease how your presence is felt by the environment.

When it comes to how much they affect the environment, the consequences of producing different foods varies wildly. Agriculture will inevitably always affect the environment in some way, and the key to striving towards sustainability is to make small positive choices that eventually amount to a larger change.

The main environmental issues associated with food production are:

• Climate change
• A decrease in natural resources
• Deforestation

Let’s take a look at which foods are the least harmful to the planet and which foods leave the largest footprint!

Lentils

As far as environmentally friendly foods go, lentils are one of the top choices. Lentils are edible pulses that are primarily grown in India, Australia and Canada. There are many different types of lentils available – all of which are incredibly nutritious!

It is estimated that every kilogram of lentils produced is responsible for just 0.9kg of CO2*. When we consider that the same amount of lamb is responsible for approximately 36kg of CO2 then we can observe just how environmentally friendly lentils are!

Broccoli

One of the most amazing things about broccoli is that it has its own natural defence against pests. This means that farmers can grow the delicious crop without having to rely too much on chemical help to keep their plants protected. Pesticides are not only damaging to the environment but can also be harmful to those consuming the foods on which they have been used!

Lamb

Lamb is arguably the most resource intensive food to produce. This is largely due to the methane emissions from the animals themselves and it is important to note that methane is as much as 25 times more harmful than CO2*!

The resources that go into making the food to sustain livestock is another reason that farming animals for meat is not eco-friendly. Also, lambs are slaughtered for meat before they become fully grown sheep. This means that the amount of meat that they provide is relatively small, especially when compared with the majority of farm animals that are fully grown before being used for meat.

Beef

Second only to lamb, beef is another environmentally damaging meat. Each kilogram of beef produced is responsible for approximately 27kg of CO2*. Furthermore, this type of red meat requires as much as 160 times more land to produce than staple plant foods*!

What’s The Answer?

As you can see, the most environmentally damaging foods are those that are derived from animals. In fact, 18% of greenhouse gas emissions come from animal agriculture*. If you think that this does not sound like a large number then consider that this is more than the combined greenhouse gas emissions of all types of transportation! A massive 32,000 million tons of CO2 are created every year by livestock and associated animal byproducts, such as dairy and leather.

Making the conscientious decision to include less meat in your diet is one of the best things that you can do for the health of the planet, alongside making sustainable choices in other areas of your life. The clothes that you wear, the modes of transport you take, and the food that you choose to consume will all contribute to your carbon footprint.

Opting to include an increased amount of plant-based foods in your diet is a great way to support a decrease of your intake of animal products. When you include a wide variety of plant-based foods, you have the potential to enhance your health in countless ways – as well as helping the health of the planet!