When you by a fairly trade product, the producer is getting a fair deal, so you can be sure that your money is going to help people in developing countries to work themselves out of poverty.

Trade between the so-called developing countries and the wealthier, more powerful nations of the world is often unfair and as a result millions of farmers and landless labourers are denied what should be their right: enough money to feed their families, send their children to school, and to pay for basic necessities. this is all because they don't get paid a fair price for what they produce. Simply through making a choice to buy Fairtrade products you can make a really difference to the lives of people across the world. .

Fairtrade tries to redress this injustice by giving producers in developing countries a better deal.

When you buy Fairtrade products, you are helping producers to earn a fair price and live in dignity. The price of commodities such as coffee fluctuate continually on the international market, leaving farmers vulnerable to making huge losses. In northern Peru, a group of farmers belongs to a co-operative that sells 30 per cent of its coffee to the Fairtrade market. The price that the farmers receive for their coffee has remained stable since the co-operative began selling on a Fairtrade basis in 1998. It is now more than double the current conventional market price.

On top of this the farmers receive a premium from the Fairtrade market, which helps to fund health insurance for themselves and their families. The premium also allows the farmers to receive training in business management and technical advice on sowing coffee, managing soils and improving the quality of their crops.

Read further examples of the benefits of Fairtrade and just what the Fairtrade Mark means.