Patriotic Vanguard: Please tell our readers a little about yourself.

Jeff Geipel: I started Fair Trade Vancouver after promoting Fair Trade with an Oxfam club at Simon Fraser University. I was drawn to the idea of Fair Trade after traveling across developing countries in Asia, West Africa and the Middle East, and seeing how little people there receive for their hard work. I graduated from SFU with a degree in political science, and live in East Vancouver.

PV: The fair trade concept is quite new to us and to most of our readers. Could you explain in more detail this business idea?

JG: Fair Trade means that farmers and artisans from developing countries get a fair price for what they produce. Often when you buy a two dollar cup of coffee, only four cents of that goes to the farmer who grew the beans. With Fair Trade, the farmers are guaranteed a fair price for their work. The supply chain is streamlined to cut out unnecessary middlemen, and it is monitored to ensure proper payment is made to the farmer or artisan.

To find Fair Trade products, the easiest way is to look for the Fair Trade certified marks on imported products like coffee, tea, sugar, chocolate, and even soccer balls. When it comes to handicrafts, it’s a little more complicated because it is hard to certify products made of so many components.

Vancouver City Councillors Raymond Louie and Andrea Reimer cutting Fair Trade cake to celebrate World Fair Trade Day and Vancouver becoming the first major city in Canada to achieve Fair Trade Town status.

PV: What are the benefits of Vancouver becoming a Fair Trade town?

Vancouver becoming a Fair Trade town means that Fair Trade products are widely available across the city, and that people are asking for them in large numbers. It also means that Fair Trade products are supported by the city government and many community groups. For the average person, this means there are many cafes and restaurants you can visit to make the right choice by purchasing Fair Trade products. Vancouver and its citizens deserve credit for their support of ethical purchasing and sustainability.

"Chocolatemeetup" is one of the educational Meetups where Jeff and his colleagues talk to people about Fair Trade (in this case it was about chocolate)

PV: In your press release you mentioned that producers of fair trade products in the developing countries would also gain a lot in this arrangement. Please explain how that can happen.

JG: Fair Trade provides higher prices for products like coffee, sugar, and fruit from developing countries. Not only are the prices higher, the supply chain is monitored so payment is guaranteed. Sadly small-scale farmers in developing countries are often given lower prices than they were promised, and there is little they can do about it. Without their own transportation and reliable market information, they are at the mercy of local middlemen. In addition to higher prices for products, Fair Trade producers are also given a social premium on top of the higher price, which they can use to build hospitals, schools and other local infrastructure.

Fair Trade logo

PV: It seems there is an environmental (green) aspect to the fair trade concept. Why?

JG: Fair Trade standards include environmental criteria, which are being strengthened all the time. Fair Trade also encourages organic production, because the higher prices paid to farmers allow for them to pay for the extra labour required, instead of using chemicals. Most Fair Trade products in Metro Vancouver are also organic.

PV: Anything else you might like to add?

JG:Purchasing Fair Trade products is something every person can do to make a genuine and meaningful difference in the lives of others. You can help people in places like Africa and South America, simply with the choices you make at the supermarket.

PV: Thanks for your time, Jeff.

Photos credit: Greg Geipel.