The Trade for Development Centre and Ask Africa worked together on a market study to look into the popularity of ethical products in South Africa. The purpose of this study is to analyse the attitude of South Africans towards ethical products, certified Fairtrade, MSC, FCS, etc.
Around 2000, the South African NGO Fair Trade Tourism (FTT) started to put in place a fair certification programme for tourism products. The standard includes fair remuneration, decent working conditions, a fair sharing of revenue and respect for cultural traditions and the environment. Special attention is paid to the South African context, with training of black workers, co-management by black people and awareness-raising on HIV and AIDS. Two decades later, more than 79 initiatives such as hotels, lodges or adventure activities have been certified.
In 2015, CECOFA applied for marketing support which the TDC was offering at the time to Central African coffee cooperatives.
Belgium’s governmental development cooperation (BTC) for agricultural projects increasingly uses value chain approaches. To start, a particular crop’s value chain – not only the production on the field but also the next stages – is analysed. After all, what’s the use of a high-quality and sustainable product if it cannot be sold? Where can farmers find potential customers and how should they communicate with them? In the south of Morocco a project in the saffron and dates value chains is in its third year. It is the first BTC project in which the Trade for Development Centre (TDC) has been involved from its formulation because of its marketing expertise with producer groups in the South. Midway this project we drew up a state of affairs.
Belgium launches its National Voluntary Report. A collection of Belgian initiatives that contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals. The report will be presented by Prime Minister Charles Michel to the United Nations on July 18.
The objective of this study is to support tourism companies in Peru and Ecuador, especially those focusing on sustainable tourism, on how to access the European market. While the content of the study focuses on conditions in Peru and Ecuador, readers in other Latin American countries may also find this information useful.
We all know fair trade bananas, coffee, chocolate… but do you know about fair tourism? It is less known, but booming! The United Nations declared 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development recalling the potential of tourism to advance the universal 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Trade for Development presents presents 4 community-based tourism projects that it supports.
Vanilla is the second most expensive spice after saffron, because growing the vanilla seed pods is labor-intensive. Despite the expense, vanilla is highly valued for its flavor. Synthetic vanilla has been growing in popularity over the years. While the world trade in natural vanilla is at around 2,000 tonnes of cured beans or approximately 50 tonnes vanilla extract, the demand for synthetic vanillin in 2010 was more than 50,000 tonnes a year. Globally, companies prefer the chemical alternative because it is cheaper.
United we stand, divided we fall. This motto defines what NOGAMU is trying to promote among farmers. To ensure that Ugandan farmers are able to sell their harvest at a fair price and grow their business, the National Organic Agricultural Movement of Uganda (NOGAMU) helps them to become organised into groups or cooperatives and to become more empowered. As a part of a cooperative, a farmer has the security to sell his harvest at a better price and can also learn to farm more sustainably.
The Trade for Development Centre and the market consultants of Globally Cool conducted three market studies for which Autre Terre provided useful input about the quinoa and tara value chains. The results should help tara and quinoa cooperatives to gain (better) access to domestic and international markets. These studies map the current market situation for quinoa, tara gum and tara powder and also give a forecast. This gives producers all the information they need to develop a good marketing strategy.
