European Fair Trade Assoc Celebrates 25 Years & Issues Statement to the Movement

The European Fair Trade Association (EFTA) is now celebrating its 25th anniversary. EFTA is an association of 100% Fair Trade organizations, with ten members in nine different European...

The European Fair Trade Association (EFTA) is now celebrating its 25th anniversary. EFTA is an association of 100% Fair Trade organizations, with ten members in nine different European countries. Long before Fairtrade certified products were widely available in supermarkets and cafes, these organizations were working hand-in-hand with small producers in developing countries, helping them to develop their businesses and to access new markets that had previously been completely shut off to them. Now many of these Fair Trade pioneers are well known brands in their respective countries –Traidcraft in the UK, Gepa in Germany, or Fair Trade Original in the Netherlands, to name but a few.

EFTA was born in 1987, to help these organizations coordinate their activities and support the spread of Fair Trade across Europe. EFTA gained formal status in 1990 and is based in the Netherlands. EFTA is also one of the founding members of the Fair Trade Advocacy Office.

EFTA also published a “Statement to the Movement”, reconfirming their commitment to small scale, disadvantaged farmers and stating its ambition to find new strategies to change the way business works.

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