tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9437268.post8290697603116493318..comments2024-02-03T07:12:06.620-05:00Comments on U.S. Food Policy: The dilemma of fair trade bananasusfoodpolicyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17098394318544229984noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9437268.post-34180459919430326452014-04-17T15:17:36.832-04:002014-04-17T15:17:36.832-04:00Thanks Parke for sharing the post and Jessica for ...Thanks Parke for sharing the post and Jessica for elaborating on some of the nuance, which is really helpful.<br />Aliza https://www.blogger.com/profile/07572531878305507345noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9437268.post-13939969383334912732014-04-09T17:11:07.897-04:002014-04-09T17:11:07.897-04:00I agree that fair trade should come from cooperati...I agree that fair trade should come from cooperatives that give farmers power to control their own lives. Plantations don't give people any say in the company they are working for because they don't own it, they work for someone else. KelticKelsy11https://www.blogger.com/profile/03571503374417457343noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9437268.post-11091803904782674882014-04-09T10:58:59.921-04:002014-04-09T10:58:59.921-04:00Great blog post - glad to see it here! Thanks Aliz...Great blog post - glad to see it here! Thanks Aliza and Parke. To add a few more comments, while the debate between small farmers and plantations has raged since fairtrade became a formal certification, the debate connects to the same challenges that the organic industry faces now and historically: how to differentiate between nearby small-scale farms and large scale organic in California/Brazil/etc.? The ‘local movement' has somewhat effectively addressed this issue. Just like your local farmer, how can small-scale banana farmers compete against the efficiencies of large scale plantations? Here are a few links to more about the debate: http://smallfarmersbigchange.coop/2012/01/17/4500/<br />http://www.equalexchange.coop/about/fair-trade/faqs/why-equal-exchange-co-ops-and-against-plantations-fair-trade-system<br />As an FYI - I'm a Friedman alum and work with Equal Exchange bananas. At Equal Exchange, we believe that authentic fair trade includes only small-scale farmer cooperatives, not plantations.<br /><br /><br />Jessicahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01831932208500804099noreply@blogger.com