Fair Trade certification has seen great successes in agricultural goods like coffee, chocolate, and tea, though it is less often associated with the apparel sector. In 2014, we saw the first companies certify their manufacturing processes as Fair Trade Certified, MEC being among them. This demonstrates progress in the apparel industry, though also prompts a number of questions about how to address supply chain concerns from top to bottom.
How does the Fair Trade model approach the apparel sector? What other certifications are working to protect labour and environmental rights along the apparel supply chain? What are the challenges and opportunities to incorporate ethics into what we wear?
This Monday, February 16th three panelists from around Vancouver will gather at The Profile on Water Street in downtown Vancouver to discuss opportunities and challenges for applying ethics to apparel industry.
· Fair Trade Vancouver: Who we are, what we do, and why we put on events like this
· Anil Hira: SFU, Professor of Political Science
· Amy Roberts: Director of Sustainability, MEC
· Kemp Edwards: CEO/Co-Founder of Ethical Profiling
This event is free and open to the public. Please share widely!
RSVP on meetup.com/
Kwame Banson March 2, 2015
Very impressed to learn about apparel makers in Vancouver opting for Fairtrade. Would like to know if they directly buy lint cotton from farmers and from where they buy it? As the responsible person for Partnerships and Member services for Fairtrade West Africa, I am keenly interested in market access for my cotton producers in Mali, Burkina Faso, Senegal and Benin, where Fairtrade certified farmers are really struggling to find buyers!
Fair Trade Vancouver April 13, 2015
Hello Kwame! Thanks for your comment and apologies it took so long to see it.
This talk focused on one retailer who is purchasing from a Fair Trade Certified factory, though we learned during the panel and discussion that manufacturing with certified cotton is still limited. Many companies are moving towards organic cotton, but Fairtrade is still some time away.
If you have any information you would like us to share with members and the Fair Trade Vancouver community we would love to hear it! Feel free to e-mail Marianne directly at [email protected].
Best of luck to you and all your partners in West Africa.