Since 1999, Alter Eco has sourced and sold a variety of different foodstuffs of exceptional quality from around the globe, including Thailand, The Philippines, and Bolivia. They are committed to facilitating the development of independent producers as well as distributors, while ensuring good working conditions for all workers. Here’s a look at the producers for some of their products sold by Trade as One.
Fair trade organic raw cane sugar from The Philippines:
The farmers of the Alter Trade Foundation in The Philippines grow and harvest sugar cane which is then crushed, and the cane juice extracted at the Alter Trade sugar mill on the island of Negros. The result of this traditional process is a delicious unrefined golden-brown organic sugar. A natural source of energy, Alter Eco unrefined Cane sugar contains up to fifty times more minerals than a refined sugar, white or brown sugar.
Purchase of this sugar directly supports the 400 farmers of the Alter Trade Foundation. Small growers with an average cultivated area of 0.9 hectares; they work the land communally in order to increase their productivity and revenue. The Fair Trade premium ensures them a fair price for their harvest so they can provide for their families and take care of their land, ensuring the quality of all future produce.
On the island of Negros, very few farmers own the land that they work. As a result of historic and cultural influences, a handful of rich landowners own the majority of the land and have a monopoly over production and trade of sugar. Created in 1987 to counter the unfair trade practices, the Alter Trade Foundation aims to redistribute the profits from sugar production to small producers. The co-operative guarantees the workers stable and decent revenue via, among other projects, the implementation of organic production methods that increase the fertility of the soil and the final product buying price. It’s good for you, good for them and good for the Earth.
Fair Trade rice from Thailand:
The Surin cooperative in Thailand was created in 1997, but the current members have been working communally since 1993. Thanks to Fair Trade buying prices and a development premium managed by the members themselves, the cooperative was able to invest in a facility for de-husking, sorting and packaging the rice. In this way they are able to increase the percentage of the final product price that goes to them. The members also avoid the added cost of multiple transports during the various stages of transformation. The close collaboration between Alter Eco and the Surin cooperative has led to the creation of three new cooperatives, currently in the process of starting their activity.
Fair Trade is crucial for this area and has a blossom effect throughout the region, it increases local revenue, and is good for the environment. Fertilizers are limited to green compost - animal and plant waste.
Fair Trade quinoa from Bolivia:
The National Association of Quinoa Farmers (ANAPQUI) was created in 1983 in order to maximize the revenue of local communities who were selling at a loss. The ANAPQUI cooperative currently serves 1100 small producers from the south of the Bolivian Altiplano who now benefit from decent living wages, transformation and packaging facilities. The latter, partially funded by the United Nations Development Program, enable them to export directly without having to rely on middlemen. The profit from sales goes towards financing educational and training programs that have led to the introduction of organic farming methods.
Finding outlets for the production of the area’s inhabitants is crucial, for this is their principal source of revenue and means of subsistence. Fair Trade farming partnerships help to stem the migration of populations from the Altiplano to urban areas in Bolivia and neighboring Chile.
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