It was only a question of time before large corporations discovered that there’s money to be made in the “ethical” market. Just like as they turned “organic” into “industrial organic,” corporate interests are looking for the legitimacy of an “ethical” label without having to pay the extra cost or engage with the underlying principles. Here’s a great article on the topic.
Fairtrade vs. Rainforest Alliance
Here’s a very interesting article about the differences between the two certification standards. It certainly affirms the doubts I had about the Rainforest Alliance approach to farmers in the tropics.
Cadbury’s Fair Trade Bar Makes Its Debut
After promising to source fairtrade beans for its flagship Dairy Milk bar, Cadbury made good. On July 21, the first Fairtrade Dairy Milk bars started coming off the production line in Bourneville. Within days, these bars will appear in shops all over the UK and Ireland. It’s the first time that a mainstream chocolate brand has switched to fairtrade.
Divine Animation
Here’s a sweet little animation from my favorite chocolate maker.
Trading Visions Posts Q&A on Mars and Cadbury
Why did Mars and Cadbury recently decided to seek third-party verification for some or all of their chocolate products? Trading Visions, a UK web site devoted to increasing information and education about fairtrade, wanted to find out. They contacted both Mars and Cadbury and number organizations to provide their answers to this and other questions. I was invited to contribute my own thoughts as well.
You can find the all questions and answers on their web site.
