Fairtrade cotton & textile standard
Also known as: Fairtrade Cotton, Fairtrade Textile Standard
Globally known fair-trade label guaranteeing minimum prices and premiums to smallholder cotton farmers (Fairtrade Cotton) and to workers along the making-up chain (Textile Standard).
Description
The Fairtrade label is issued internationally by Fairtrade International (Bonn) and in Germany by TransFair e.V.. It guarantees smallholder cooperatives a minimum price paid even when world-market prices drop, plus a Fairtrade premium for community projects (schools, healthcare, organic conversion).
For textiles there are two variants: Fairtrade Cotton only certifies raw-cotton cultivation in producing countries (India, Kyrgyzstan, Mali, Burkina Faso). The rest of the supply chain (spinning, dyeing, making-up) must be documented but is not audited. The Fairtrade Textile Standard (since 2016) goes far further: it covers the entire textile value chain including sewing with living wages and environmental requirements, but due to its high demands it is much rarer.
A Fairtrade label on a T-shirt can therefore mean two very different things. Combined with GOTS, Fairtrade adds a social-label surcharge: GOTS covers environment and basic social requirements, Fairtrade additionally secures fair prices to farmers.
Properties
| Issuer | Fairtrade International (Bonn) / TransFair e.V. |
|---|---|
| Scope | Minimum price + premium for cotton farmers, optionally full supply chain |
| Label | Fairtrade logo with addition "Cotton" or "Textile Standard" |
Related product categories
Sources & references
2- Fairtrade Deutschland fairtrade-deutschland.de https://www.fairtrade-deutschland.de/
- Wikipedia: Fairtrade Wikipedia — Freie Enzyklopädie https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairtrade
