Carlos Macario, 25
Ethical dilemma: fair trade versus organic
As our spending habits are being scrutinised and questioned, Kati Dshedsherov ponders whether we can only have our cake and eat it if it’s home-made!
You are standing in the supermarket holding an organic apple from the UK in one hand and a fair-trade apple from South Africa in the other. Which one do you buy?
If you buy the organic apples from the UK you deny marginalised farmers in developing countries their desperately needed income and push them further into poverty, but if you buy fair-trade apples airlifted from the other side of the world you contribute to carbon emissions in the atmosphere and climate change that will eventually affect you, but people in poor countries even more so. So what do you do?
If you buy the organic apples from the UK you deny marginalised farmers in developing countries their desperately needed income and push them further into poverty, but if you buy fair-trade apples airlifted from the other side of the world you contribute to carbon emissions in the atmosphere and climate change that will eventually affect you, but people in poor countries even more so. So what do you do?
Here are the arguments
Certified Fair trade products promise a guaranteed regular income, better working and living standards for the growers in poor countries, and investments in their local community including schooling and health. The main aim of fair-trade standards is social benefit – giving farmers more control over their lives and protecting them from the destructive powers of globalisation and fluctuating world market prices.
The concept of organic foods, on the other hand, doesn’t put the farmer in the centre of caring attention but the farming process and the environment. Proponents claim that it’s more nutritious, safer to eat, and usually tastes better than non-organic as the aim of its producers is not colour, shape and long shelf-life – the issues that rule the world of mass-produced conventional foods. Organic standards prohibit the use of pesticides, herbicides and other synthetic fertilisers that pollute the groundwater.
The concept of organic foods, on the other hand, doesn’t put the farmer in the centre of caring attention but the farming process and the environment. Proponents claim that it’s more nutritious, safer to eat, and usually tastes better than non-organic as the aim of its producers is not colour, shape and long shelf-life – the issues that rule the world of mass-produced conventional foods. Organic standards prohibit the use of pesticides, herbicides and other synthetic fertilisers that pollute the groundwater.
Here’s what ‘the experts’ say
Saleem Huq, Director of the Climate Change Programme at International Institute for Environment and Development:
‘If poor countries need to use up some atmospheric space to fly over their products to rich countries, they should be allowed to do so. For developing countries to participate in international trade they shouldn’t be penalised by consumers not buying their fair-trade products.
Carbon emissions induced by developing countries through airlifting fair-trade products should be put into perspective and not compared to the carbon foot print of rich countries that produce 90 per cent of all greenhouse gasses.
Rich countries need to free atmospheric space for poor countries to be able to pollute in the short-term while they are working on sustainable long-term solutions.’
Ian Bretman of the Fair trade Foundation:
'It’s easy – buy both. That way you help farmers everywhere, you show your support for organic production and Fair trade, and you eat more apples – which is good for your health.
Certification labels like Fair trade or organic are important in ensuring that we as consumers know what we are getting and that products are independently checked against clear standards. But they are not intended to stop us thinking about what we buy, where it comes from, and how its been produced.
Everything we do has an impact on the world’s resources, whether it’s the labour of farmers or the environment, and we should make sure that both are being properly valued and respected.'
Keith Attrill, a miller from the Isle of Wight, who sells organic flour at farmers markets and shops across the UK:
‘If you can buy organic products that are grown locally you should, but if they are not grown locally you should buy fair-trade. There is room for everyone.’
So, the answer seems to be a case of six of one and half a dozen of the other. This may be something to consider next time you are buying a dozen apples.
‘If poor countries need to use up some atmospheric space to fly over their products to rich countries, they should be allowed to do so. For developing countries to participate in international trade they shouldn’t be penalised by consumers not buying their fair-trade products.
Carbon emissions induced by developing countries through airlifting fair-trade products should be put into perspective and not compared to the carbon foot print of rich countries that produce 90 per cent of all greenhouse gasses.
Rich countries need to free atmospheric space for poor countries to be able to pollute in the short-term while they are working on sustainable long-term solutions.’
Ian Bretman of the Fair trade Foundation:
'It’s easy – buy both. That way you help farmers everywhere, you show your support for organic production and Fair trade, and you eat more apples – which is good for your health.
Certification labels like Fair trade or organic are important in ensuring that we as consumers know what we are getting and that products are independently checked against clear standards. But they are not intended to stop us thinking about what we buy, where it comes from, and how its been produced.
Everything we do has an impact on the world’s resources, whether it’s the labour of farmers or the environment, and we should make sure that both are being properly valued and respected.'
Keith Attrill, a miller from the Isle of Wight, who sells organic flour at farmers markets and shops across the UK:
‘If you can buy organic products that are grown locally you should, but if they are not grown locally you should buy fair-trade. There is room for everyone.’
So, the answer seems to be a case of six of one and half a dozen of the other. This may be something to consider next time you are buying a dozen apples.
A few facts
- In 2003 there were only 150 fair-trade products in the UK. Now there are more than 1500 making the UK the highest consumer of fair-trade goodies.
- The sale of organic foods in the UK has increased tenfold in the last decade and a record 30 per cent growth is expected to be reported for 2005.
- The sale of organic foods in the UK has increased tenfold in the last decade and a record 30 per cent growth is expected to be reported for 2005.
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