On the heels of the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) meeting and in preparation for the Fair Trade Federation Conference, it seems like a good time to talk about bringing more democracy and transparency to the Fair Trade Movement.

Fair trade has sought to create a model that brings democracy and transparency to the entire supply chain of a commodity. In the coffee sector, this idea is put into practice stringently with growers and their cooperatives undergoing an exhaustive certification process. FLO is very careful to make sure that financials are straight, Boards are fairly elected, and that some level of democracy exists. When it comes to coffee roasters and importers however, things get a bit murkier in the FLO system.

All that is asked of licensees (roasters and importers) in the FLO/TFUSA system is that they provide quarterly reports with the amount of coffee sold under minimum fair trade terms to FLO's national initiative accompanied by a check for their licensing fees. Those fees are based on the amount of certified product sold. To this point, these reports are not audited in any way by TFUSA, although I believe they are trying to develop an auditing system.

TFUSA has done the Fair Trade Movement a disservice by not asking more of the companies that are licensed to sell fair trade certified products. The transparency demanded of growers is simply not asked of companies selling FT products. When asked why companies like P&G and SBUX are not forced to be transparent with their purchases, we are told that this is not possible because it would compromise these corporations-- it is not standard business practice. Right, and this is what many of us thought the movement had set out to change. This lack of transparency is a serious double standard and it has been pointed out by growers.

But this is only a one piece of the problem. An equally troubling issue is the way that large less-committed companies have entered into the fair trade community. TFUSA has frequently defended its positions by claiming the apolitical stance of "we certify products, not companies". Fair enough. They also are the gatekeepers for entry into the Fair Trade Certified world privately working out the licensing deals with companies that want to sell FTC products. In doing this they shape the FT community and movement by unilaterally deciding who can enter the scene and what their terms should be. They do this with out any systematic input by any other entity in what is a very dynamic movment. Their decisions are made by their CEO who is advised by their unelected board.

Here at the JC we think this is a crock and it is in a nutshell why we left the TFUSA system. TFUSA has consciously chosen to structure itself in the likeness of a corporation, as opposed to a democratic cooperative, without any mechanism for input by others in the FT movement. Meanwhile, as more "bad actor" companies like Coca-Cola enter into the FT market, we face losing the confidence of others in the larger movement for social and economic justice.

This weekend in DC the Fair Trade Federation has an opportunity to redefine itself much as the USFT redefined itself this past winter. We will be there with the hope that others in the larger FT community are concerned about the direction that the movement is going and that more folks are willing to demand a seat at the table when difficult decisions are made.