How Fair Trade Has Made a Difference
Women: The association operates a women's literacy program using Fair Trade premium funds
Product Certification
Herbs and Spices Program
Interest in Fair Trade Certified herbs and spices is growing among U.S. companies. Besides the great variety of herbs and spices being sold in consumer packages, the wide selection of eligible Fair Trade herbs and spices may also be used as ingredients in a range of food, beverage and body care products - such as ice cream, tea blends, baking mixes and body lotions. Recently, mainstream brands have started to capitalize on this opportunity. For example, as part of their commitment to source all Fair Trade Certified ingredients by 2013, Ben & Jerry’s is currently converting all of its vanilla ice cream (and much much more) to Fair Trade Certified. In the body-care realm, consider sourcing vanilla, hibiscus or chamomile, among other ingredients!
Featured Producer
The Coopérative Agricole Kavokiva de Daloa (CAKD) was founded in 1999 by 600 farmers in the department of Daloa, the heart of the cocoa-growing region of Côte d’Ivoire - a country that produces about 40 percent of the cocoa in the world. The Ivorian...
importers
How to Import Fair Trade Herbs and Spices
- Sign a Fair Trade USA certification and licensing agreement.
- Pay an annual importer fee of $500 to Fair Trade USA .
- Purchase Fair Trade Certified herbs and spices from Fair Trade producer groups or exporters certified by FLO-Cert. Sell Fair Trade Certified herbs and spices to other Fair Trade registered traders and operators.
- Pay at least the Fair Trade minimum price and the designated Fair Trade premium to the certified cooperative--see the Pricing Database
- Submit quarterly reports to Fair Trade USA on imports and sales of Fair Trade Certified product. Undergo, and comply with, regular desk audits and on-site audits.
manufacturers or brands
How to sell Fair Trade Certified Herbs and Spices
- Sign a Fair Trade USA certification and licensing agreement.
- Purchase Fair Trade Certified herbs and spices from a registered importer.
- Submit a product profile application for each product to be labeled.
- Submit all packaging, sales and marketing material carrying the Fair Trade Certified logo to Fair Trade USA for approval.
- Submit quarterly reports on Fair Trade Certified herbs and spices purchases and product sales. Undergo, and comply with, regular desk audits and on-site audits.
- Brands pay a fee based on quarterly sales of labeled Fair Trade Certified products.
- Please ask about our program for small-scale partners, as lower fees and reporting requirements apply.
- Please note: For composite products with more than one ingredient, all ingredients that can be Fair Trade Certified should be Fair Trade Certified. For example, in a chocolate bar, the cane sugar, cocoa and vanilla should all be sourced from Fair Trade Certified producers.
