Fair trade label: creation of the SPP-France Association

ETHIQUABLE, AVSF, Café Michel, ARDEAR Rhones-Alpes and BIOCOOP have just created the French Association of "Small Producers Symbol", a fair trade label that belongs to producers.

According to the founders of the association: "The strength of the fair trade proposal is based on organized peasant agriculture". They continue: "after several decades of existence and profound changes - especially in the 2000s, fair trade is no longer solely focused on that vision."

They warn: "By not putting more priority support on small-scale agriculture that it was proposed to support from its creation, fair trade is in danger of being emptied of its substance."

Declaration of principles (in French)

The "Small Producers Symbol" was officially launched in November 2010 in Honduras. As stated by the National Coordination of Fair Trade in Peru (NCLA), the initiative came in response to Fairtrade International, which no longer exclusively reserves its Fairtrade label to small producers: « FLO, the international organisation that certifies fair trade in the world, has allowed large businesses to become certified to the detriment of small producers ». 

The label comprises a comprehensive set of criteria for production, management, respect for the environment, the management of relations between producers and purchasing organisations...

In France, the "Small Producers Symbol" has already been put on 35 products of the Ethiquable brand.

More information on the label : Tusimbolo.org