Producers First and Foremost

In its New Global Strategy for Fairtrade, FLO states that within the next few years, producer networks may take their place as fundamental actors of the system instead of being just the recipients of fairtrade. This endeavour has always been at the heart of the movement. But do producers really occupy the place that is rightfully theirs in this system?

For the past 15 years, my own fair trade has been centred on the families that are at the base of the system, on the field. This journey around the world of fair trade began in 1996 when, with Laure Waridel, I visited members of the Unión de Comunidades Indígenas de la Región del Istmo (UCIRI), in Mexico. Since then, I have visited 25 producer groups in 15 countries. Added up, these trips amount to almost two years living in direct contact with farmers, craftspeople and other workers in the fairtrade world.I wanted my pictures to reflect the respect I feel for these men and women. I always wanted to highlight the producers’ role and importance within the system. I am not trying to redefine fair trade, but I think that this movement must be managed by and for the producers of the South. Fair trade is a paradigm shift, not just for conventional trade but also for traditional forms of international development, too often of a paternalistic nature.

Francisco Van der Hoff at his home near Ixtepec in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Francisco Van der Hoff states what the UCIRI cooperative’s 25-year history has meant for small-scale Mexican producers: an “education that has gradually led to social, cultural and political self-determination, to which they would like to add economic self-determination.” At CoopeAgri, in Costa Rica, over $750,000 are invested yearly in the cooperative’s social programming. Of this amount, 22% comes from Fairtrade premiums, and the balance is paid out of their own funds. By working with producer cooperatives, I have seen that fairtrade supports real grassroots organizations that are the engines of development within their areas. We must also consider the intangible benefits of the model: who is smart enough to find out how to quantify pride, or even dignity?

In 2004 I was able to visit private Fairtrade-certified tea gardens, where I was quickly aware of the democratic deficit and of the lack of worker self-determination. In 2009, however, I was pleasantly surprised at the energy shown by the joint committees and the highly participative projects that Fairtrade premiums were able to fund in Ecuador’s flower plantations, a system whereby all organizations rely on a salaried workforce. This shows that the seed of change has taken root.

	Catherine Nana and her daughter crushing shea nuts near the famous "butter tree" in Burkina Faso

Nowadays, a total of 827 producer organizations are certified by FLO. Whether they are cooperatives, private plantations or businesses, these organizations are part of three international producer networks. They are: in Latin America, CLAC (Coordinadora Lationoamericana y del Caribe de Pequeños Productores de Comercio Justo); in Africa, AFN (African Fairtrade Network); and in Asia, NAP (Network of Asian Producers). Since 2006 these three networks have four permanent seats on FLO’s Board.

In addition, some groups of producers are shareholders of businesses in the North that are involved in the distribution of Fairtrade products, such as El Guabo, in Ecuador, one of the owners of the Dutch company Agrofair. Also, some groups of producers try to process their own raw goods in order to benefit from the added value, such as the Cuisine Camino cooking products line by La Siembra. Unfortunately, such initiatives are few and far between.

	Wendemagah Kabege tending to coffee drying in the sun in Jimma, Ethiopia.

We must therefore always place the producers at the forefront of our thinking and of our work for fair trade. They indeed deserve better living conditions, but also more power within the system. Cooperatives and some worker committees have allowed more local self-determination. The time has come to act for these organisations to be better represented at all levels of the fair trade movement so that one day, these farmers and workers may achieve true equality. Thank you for recognizing the dreams of happiness and freedom they have in common with the rest of us, and which identify us all as brothers and sisters within the great human family.

Eric St. Pierre is a renowned photojournalist who has been documenting Fair Trade for more than 15 years. He has published and contributed to several books on the subject, including his most recent work entitled, "Fair Trade : a Human Journey". www.ericstpierre.ca