In collaboration with the Domestic Fair Trade Association, the Center for Fair and Alternative Trade (CFAT) has been working to highlight the common challenges faced by U.S. and international food production systems. Together they released a “Report on Market and Supply Chain Research on Domestic Fair Trade” in time for World Fair Trade Day.

This report is a product of the Center for Fair and Alternative Trade’s (CFAT) newest project area, Food Justice: Production to Consumption. The report was prepared by Shelby Coopwood, CFAT Graduate Research Assistant, and supervised by Joshua Sbicca and Laura Raynolds, faculty.

DFAT’s May 11, 2018 press release by Erika A. Inwald:

RELEASE: The Power of Messaging Domestic Fair Trade
Announcing the release of newly compiled research, “A Report on Market and Supply Chain Research on Domestic Fair Trade,” in time for World Fair Trade Day

Brooklyn, NY— On May 11, 2018, the Domestic Fair Trade Association (DFTA), in partnership with the Center for Fair and Alternative Trade at Colorado State University, is releasing the first-ever comprehensive report on consumer market patterns and awareness of domestic fair trade messaging.

This exciting report highlights a strong potential market opportunity for domestic fair trade. Information about consumer preferences from this newly compiled research brings valuable insight for farmworkers, farmers, food co-ops, and NGOs committed to ecological sustainability and social justice.

“Our research allows current and future DFTA members to see the marketing potential of Domestic Fair Trade, and how important it is for businesses and organizations to make the public commitment to ethical values in our food system,” says Erika A. Inwald, the National Coordinator for the Domestic Fair Trade Association.

Part one of this report presents reviews of ten key academic articles. Next, this research offers an analysis of media coverage illustrated with tables. Part three is a summary of consumer and market research on domestic fair trade.

“We often think of fair trade as addressing inequalities in international food systems and forget that US food production faces many of the same challenges,” said Laura T. Raynolds, Director of the Center for Fair & Alternative Trade. “This research highlights opportunities for strengthening domestic fair trade, a mission the DFTA and its members are helping advance.”

The term “local” is reported to be a widely effective marketing phrase and there is evidence that domestic fair trade advocates can utilize this angle to uplift fairness for farmworkers and small/mid-size farmers. “Products that offer human benefits, such as good working conditions, may be able to obtain a greater price premium and have a wider appeal than those focusing just on animal or environmental benefits,” (Tully and Winer, 2014).

This report also illustrates the importance of food cooperatives in expanding the movement for increased fairness and environmental sustainability in domestic agricultural supply chains. One survey included in the report concludes that 80 percent of co-op shoppers from 9 different states say they are interested in learning more about or becoming involved in Domestic Fair Trade.

Release of this report is in celebration of World Fair Trade Day, an inclusive worldwide festival of events hosted by the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) that celebrates Fair Trade’s contribution to sustainable development, economic empowerment of small producers, gender equality in workplaces, and responsible production practices.

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The Domestic Fair Trade Association is a non-profit membership-based organization with 35 members spanning five stakeholder groups along the food chain—farmers, farmworkers, retailers, intermediaries (manufacturers, processors, and distributors), and NGOs. The mission of the DFTA is to promote, educate, and advocate for an agricultural production system that meets the sixteen domestic fair trade principles identified by diverse stakeholders throughout the agricultural supply chain.

The Center for Fair and Alternative Trade at Colorado State University is an internationally recognized research facility dedicated to the rapidly growing field of market-based social change and environmental protection. Through a variety of research and outreach activities, CFAT produces in-depth analyses of current initiatives, future opportunities, and on-going dilemmas to better understand the potential and limits of fair and alternative trade, product certification schemes, and other aspects of the emerging conscious consumer movement.