Day 21: Fair Trade
Name: Emi
School: Rice University
Green
Not so fun fact: 90% of produced chocolate along the Ivory Coast is produced using child slaves.
Gerardo Arias Camacho holding coffee he farms
Gerardo Arias Camacho is a Costa Rican coffee farmer whose ability to make a profit fell when the price
of coffee fell in the 1980s. Many farmers went out of business and many Costa Ricans were unemployed.
Gerardo himself was forced to go to the United States to earn money to buy his own farm from his
parents so they could retire. When he bought the farm, the town he lived in was in such a desolate state
that it lacked basic municipal systems and public utilities.
This all changed with the introduction of Fair Trade farming in his town. With the local workers now
working for at least minimum wage, the standard of living was raised and people for the first time in
many years were able to pay their taxes. The wellbeing of the town's coffee growing population was no
longer so dependent on the roller coaster of prices that coffee is so susceptible to, meaning the industry
immediately became more sustainable and dependable.
Were it not for Fair Trade, Gerardo thinks his business would have failed and his town would have failed.
But with Fair trade, the quality of living has increased for all of his town's residents and it has become a
much safer place. Even better, his three children are on the track for, if not already part of, higher
education, meaning they can end the cycle of struggle that their dad went through as a child.
Fair Trade has also made Gerardo's farms more sustainable. In just 10 years, Gerardo's farm's use of
pesticides has decreased by 80%, which is incredible. The oven used to fuel the coffee roasters at night
now use coffee skins and nuts instead of virgin wood. Less pesticides and erosion makes for a healthier
Costa Rican environment!
Gerardo wants to remind us that we, as consumers, have the power to instate this kind of change all
around the globe. By purchasing foods with Fair Trade labels, we can directly support farmers like
Gerardo and bring unsustainable markets back into the green spotlight. It's an easy tactic that can move
to end poverty, encourage more sustainable farming techniques, and make for safer communities
around the globe.
Before reading Gerardo's story, I didn't really understand the importance of Fair Trade. Because these
agricultural processes are so distanced from American cities, we don't understand what kind of practices
are happening before the product lands in our hands. But in reality, entire communities are dependent
upon the things we purchase from them, and if the economy determines that the price of a commodity
goes down, then those communities fail. By buying Fair Trade, we discourage this cycle by promoting
dependable wages and livable salaries. Moreover, Fair Trade promotes environmental responsibility by
giving farmers the time to think about sustainable alternatives to their practices.
Now that I better understand why Fair Trade is important, I've come to an ethical conclusion - Fair Trade
is the best trade. We always externalize our costs, and when we see something that's super cheap on
the shelves, we don't really think about why it's so cheap. Those costs are being cut somewhere along
the line, and most likely, it's from the pocketbooks of the people who made it. Seeing pictures and
hearing the stories of these people puts the human back in the product, which is really important when
it comes to buying ethically. Cheap is not always the best - and shortcuts never work!