Fair Trade (Ethical Trade)

Fair Trade is an international certification system designed to protect smallholder coffee producers from the volatility of the commodity market by guaranteeing a price floor: currently $1.80/lb for conventional Arabica and $2.20/lb for certified organic, regardless of how low the C-Market price falls. On top of the floor price, buyers pay a Fairtrade Premium of $0.20/lb directed to community development projects chosen democratically by the cooperative (schools, healthcare, processing infrastructure). The programme also mandates minimum labour standards, bans child labour, and requires basic environmental protections. Fairtrade International manages the cooperative-based model used outside the United States.