When you turn on the radio and hear about nation-wide job loss, perhaps even in your own family, or when you read about long-standing struggles with diseases like TB, you may feel discouraged and uncertain.  Fair Trade gives us some good news to share, along with proven ways to build an economy for everyone.

This year Portland, Oregon plays host to the annual Fair Trade Federation conference and birthday celebration.  FTF has been around for 15 years now, an association of organizations fully committed to business models that promote principles such as dialogue, transparency, and respect.  The FTF just released their latest Trends Report—thanks in part to a donation from the CRS Fair Trade Fund—and much of the news is good!

•    Seventy-six percent of production by FTF partners comes from female producers, as Fair Trade continues to be a mechanism for women’s empowerment.
•    Sales for FTF members grew from $499,893 in 2006  to $517, 385 in 2007.   A report from FINE (a global consortium) shows that global Fair Trade sales in 2007 reached $2.5 billion!
•    Almost 14 percent of FTF members have been in business for more than 20 years, demonstrating some impressive staying power.  At the same time, almost half of FTF members were established in the past six years, indicating growth in Fair Trade shopping opportunities.

Here at CRS Fair Trade, we have been experiencing more and more commitment to Fair Trade by the US Catholic community.  In 2008:

•    There were more than 1,000 Work of Human Hands events.
•    U.S. Catholics drank more than ½ million dollars worth of Fair Trade coffee.
•    About 600 communities were able to Raise Money Right enjoying Fair Trade chocolate and learning about Catholic Social Teaching.

All this is possible because in good times and bad, you participate in CRS Fair Trade. Each sale helps build income and community stability overseas AND connects you to a global community working to recover and thrive!

Tags: Chocolate, Coffee, crafts, fair trade, Fair Trade Federation, FINE

This entry was posted on Saturday, March 28th, 2009 at 9:48 am and is filed under Events. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.