Nowak, Catherine

English

York University, Osgoode Hall Law School

Osgoode Hall Law JournalVolume 46, Number 1 (Spring 2008) Article 13Book Notes: Fair Trade Coffee: The Prospects andPitfalls of Market-Driven Social Justice, by GavinFridellCatherine NowakFollow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/ohljBook NoteThis Book Note is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at Osgoode Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in OsgoodeHall Law Journal by an authorized editor of Osgoode Digital Commons.Citation InformationNowak, Catherine. "Book Notes: Fair Trade Coffee: The Prospects and Pitfalls of Market-Driven Social Justice, by Gavin Fridell."Osgoode Hall Law Journal 46.1 (2008) : 217-218.http://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/ohlj/vol46/iss1/13217Book NoteFAIR TRADE COFFEE: THE PROSPECTS ANDPITFALLS OF MARKET-DRIVEN SOCIAL JUSTICE,by Gavin FridetL1CATHERINE NOWAKTHE SOCIAL MOVEMENT to purchase fairly-traded goods has grown significantlythroughout recent decades and is now a major component of manyinternational development programs. Supporters celebrate the impact fair traderegimes have had in raising labour and employment standards in the globalsouth. However, Fridell notes that most assessments are primarily focused onpoverty alleviation at the local level. He argues that the broader politico-economic structures that frame the issue have been left largely unexamined byanalysts. While Fridell acknowledges that local-level assessment is important, athorough examination of the broader structures is essential when evaluating thelong-term sustainability of fair trade regimes.Fridell concentrates his analysis on the fair-trade coffee movement. Heconcludes that the regime has changed from an alternative trading network,based on small businesses that exclusively carry fair-trade products, to a nichemarket, driven by large corporations with only minor commitments to fairtrade given their overall size. For instance, most large coffee companies carry atoken 'fair-trade blend' that is not distributed nor marketed as widely as theconventional blends.2 Fridell argues that the new corporate model leaves littleroom for interaction between consumers and producers. Since producers andconsumers remain separate from each other without any real knowledge abouthow the other operates, the main catalyst for performance continues to beprofit-based. He proposes the local development model as an alternative, as it is1. (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2007) 291 pages.2. At one major coffee company that markets itself as socially responsible, only 6 per cent of thetotal coffee beans are certified as fair trade.218 (20081 46 OSGOODE HALL LAW JOURNALmore consistent with the early principles of fair trade that emphasize a moralcommitment and international solidarity.Fridell relies on case studies from both Canada and Mexico to examinethe movement at both the local and the global levels. The book begins byintroducing the reader to the historical and political roots of fair trade theory. Itthen documents the fair trade successes seen in several cooperatives in Mexico.Later, the book examines the impact of northern institutions and consumers inCanada. The book concludes with an analysis of the prospects and limitationsof the fair trade network.

Book Notes: Fair Trade Coffee: The Prospects and Pitfalls of Market-Driven Social Justice, by Gavin Fridell

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Book Notes: Fair Trade Coffee: The Prospects and Pitfalls of Market-Driven Social Justice, by Gavin Fridell

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York University, Osgoode Hall Law School