Finding Fair Trade in the Bronx

Learning about the benefits of Fair Trade is good and all but why not put all that knowledge to action? When you go shopping next time look out for the Fair Trade logo like the one pictured above. Snap a picture post it on your favorite social media sight and make sure you put #fordhamfairtrade in the caption. We want to start making that a trending topic.

To get the movement started, I tried going to C-Town on 187^th to find all the Fair Trade products they had. I was looking to buy coffee anyways, so I figured I’d buy a Fair Trade product to support the movement and then also inform everyone else about the available Fair Trade products at C-Town. The only problem was I couldn’t find any Fair Trade products at C-Town. I looked up and down the aisles several times, but to no avail. So I’m asking for your help. If you’ve found Fair Trade products at C-Town, Modern, or any other local grocery store Fordham students might go to, tell me about it in the comments section below.

Now back to my original point, on your next grocery trip, no matter where it is look for a fair trade product. See if you can find them. If you’re successful, take a picture of it, upload it to social media, and don’t forget to #fordhamfairtrade. We want to build awareness around campus. If you can’t find any products, ask an employee if they have any or even ask the manager. The more demand they hear for Fair Trade products the sooner they’ll stock them on the shelves.

           

Here’s a list of the most common Fair Trade products at super markets:

·         Coffee

·         Tea

·         Sugar/sweeteners

·         Chocolate

·         Herbs/Spices

·         Produce

And, after all this, if you’re still frustrated by the lack of Fair Trade products, don’t forget to check out the Amani Fair Trade cart located in the Gabelli School of Business building on at the Rose Hill Campus. Especially during Midterms, stop by for some Fair Trade chocolate or a nice cup of coffee to wake you up after pulling an all-nighter. 

Don't forget to like the facebook page where you can find new products and new material to browse over.

Fair Trade: A Costly Fallacy

Jim Gaffigan (one of my favorite comedians) has a great line where he states, “Organic is a grocery term meaning twice as expensive.” It seems this stereotype has carried over to people’s perceptions of Fair Trade products as well though. It makes sense in theory. Paying producers more means that the sellers need to charge more to make money still. Yet, take a simple visit to Amazon.com and search for "Ethiopian coffee." You'll find a 5 pound bag for $39.99. Then look up “Ethiopian Fair Trade coffee” and you’ll find a 5 pound bag for $38.95. That's a perfect example that Fair Trade products are not always more expensive. Now of course Fair Trade coffee is going to be more expensive than brands like Maxwell House and Folgers, but those are mass produced with very little care for quality.

            Now you may be thinking, how could Fair Trade products compete with other products in a normal market? The answer: supply chains. Fair Trade products cut out the middle men. If you watch Black Gold, a documentary on Ethiopian coffee farmers, they explain how middle men will buy the coffee at the farmers for a small percentage of what it would be worth on the direct market. Fair Trade cuts these middle men out of the equation, lessening the cost and allowing most of the profit to go directly to the producers.

The products that are priced above competitors might end up higher due to a simple supply shortage. There hasn’t been a large enough market yet for Fair Trade producers to create more goods. As the market grows, as it has been doing, the producers will be able to create more goods which will drive production costs down. This means the Fair Trade market will become even more competitive with the regular goods market in terms of prices. Eventually if you can’t rationalize buying Fair Trade products on a moral basis, you’ll see the economic benefits in lower prices.