Fair Trade

principles • resources • vendor profiles

Fair trade is a deliberate effort to engage the global market in responsible business principles. Throughout generations of conventional trade, some of the world’s most skilled craftsmen have been marginalized. Today, talented artisans in regions of Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Central Africa are fighting to maintain personal dignity while struggling to provide for themselves and their families. Fair trade organizations work to provide these artisans with an opportunity for economic development by helping them rightfully earn a living wage in safe and healthy working conditions.

In addition to ensuring fair wages and safe working conditions, transparent fair trade practices empower men and women of the majority world to develop long-term relationships with buyers, grow in business expansion and ownership, and cultivate prolonged subsistence through environmental sustainability.

The Fair Trade Cycle

Your purchase is part of a business cycle that helps provide fair labor and equity to workers in developing nations. Profits from the store are used to purchase more products, which keeps farmers and artisans busy with steady work. Mustard Seed Fair Trade works with international vendors who forge relationships between stores in the United States and artisans around the world. You purchase keeps the cycle going!