Deck 16: Fair Trade, Daniel Jaffee

Question 1

1) The aim of fair trade is to

A) replace capitalism with a more equitable economic system.
B) remedy the unfair economic conditions faced by small farmers in the Global South
C) transition small farmers in the Global South to organic farming.
D) increase free trade between countries in the global south and those in the Global north.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

2) For countries in the Global South, the terms of trade over the past century have

A) been fair and equitable.
B) have benefited them in the forms of rapid development.
C) have systemically disadvantaged them.
D) have excluded them from global trade.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

3) Dependency theorists argued that global trade is characterized by unequal exchange. Unequal exchange

A) is when a country exchanges primary commodities, such as coffee, for finished projects, like electronics.
B) characterizes trade between core countries.
C) assists countries in the global south in upgrading their agricultural sectors.
D) has been eliminated with free trade agreements.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

4) Which of the following is a correct statement regarding agricultural commodities such as coffee and sugar?

A) Over time their prices have increased in real terms.
B) Over time their prices have decreased in real terms.
C) There are prices are very stable.
D) While prices tend to be low, farmers receive the full amount of world price.

Question 5

5) Fair trade certifications, were created by

A) the federal government through the USDA.
B) the United Nations through the Food and Agriculture Organization.
C) voluntary nonprofit, civil society organizations.
D) the European Union.

Question 6

6) The "mainstream" of fair trade products refers to

A) loosening fair trade standards to allow more farms to get certified.
B) the expansion of fair trade to small producers in the Global North.
C) efforts to build fair trade principles into free trade agreements.
D) efforts to get larger retailers to carry more fair trade products.

Question 7

7) Mainstreaming fair trade certified products

A) has resulted in dramatic increases in fair trade sales, but concerns that it us undermining the founding principles of fair trade.
B) has been unsuccessful as large retailers have largely rejected fair trade products.
C) has resulted in more stringent fair trade standards.
D) has had the unintended effect of increasing the volatility of agricultural commodity prices.

Question 8

8) Research on smallholder coffee holders in Sierra Juárez region of Mexico finds that

A) fair trade reduced debt through pre-harvest credit.
B) there were environmental benefits.
C) increasing participation by women in farming decisions and cooperative leaders.
D) All of the above

Question 9

9. Research on fair trade finds the majority of small farmers that are fair trade certified are no longer in poverty. ?

Question 10

10) Sarah Besky's research on fair trade certification of tea plantations in India found that fair trade certification

A) benefited workers tremendously in terms of improved wages.
B) required improvements in labor conditions that exceeded India's labor laws.
C) had the unintended effect of raising labor costs so high that many workers were laid off.
D) did not improve workers incomes or working conditions.

Question 11

11) Most fair-trade scholars agree that for small-scale peasant farmers, fair trade

A) does not make a difference the quality of housing, education or healthcare.
B) make a difference, but does not have transformative effects.
C) has economic benefits, but not noneconomic benefits.
D) has noneconomic benefits, but no economic benefits.

Question 12

12) Fair trade has multiple identities. Which of the following is not one of its identities?

A) Social movement
B) Regulatory system
C) Certification system
D) Market

Question 13

13) The "halo effect" refers to which of the following?

A) When corporations sell a small amount of fair trade goods to make themselves appear socially responsible
B) When corporations sell a large amount of fair trade goods and are recognized as a market leader
C) When fair trade certification results in increased in world commodity prices
D) When the livelihoods of farmers in a given nation improve as a result of fair trade

Question 14

14) Which of the following statements is correct regarding fair trade?

A) Six crops, coffee, cacao, cotton, rice, honey, and sugar, account for the overwhelmingly majority of fair trade sales.
B) Fair trade certification has had the largest impact on produce farmers.
C) The majority of fair trade farmers produce just two commodities: corn and soybeans.
D) Fair trade certification is distributed equally across all farmers.

Question 15

15) The process through which small-scale peasant farmers are driven off their land is called

A) unequal exchange.
B) depeasantization.
C) development.
D) technology treadmills.

Question 16

16) Which of the following is a controversy within the fair trade system?

A) The strategy of main mainstreaming
B) Whether or not to incorporate planation style agriculture into fair trade
C) How to certify multi-ingredient products
D) All of the above

Question 17

17) Although the fair trade system has experienced a growth of more than 50% in producer members since 2010,

A) consumer demand has not kept up.
B) consumer demand continues to outpace supply.
C) many long-time producers have left fair trade for conventional markets.
D) total production of fair trade goods as declined because of environmental challenges, such as drought.

Question 18

18) Fair Trade USA

A) opted out of the international fair trade certification system in order to certify plantations.
B) opted out of the international fair trade certification system because it was discriminating against small farmers in the U.S.
C) opted out of the international fair trade certification system in order to develop a fair trade program for small farmers in the U.S.
D) All of the above

Question 19

19) Consumers who seek out fair trade products in the U.S.

A) can rely on finding a single, uniform fair trade label on the approved products.
B) can only find fair trade products in designated fair trade stores, usually located in metropolitan areas.
C) must do their own research on competing fair trade labels.
D) must order their fair trade products directly through fair trade organizations.

Question 20

20) That fair trade uses global capitalist markets, while it simultaneously attempts to redistribute wealth and power. This is referred to as

A) in and against the market.
B) in the market and for it.
C) socialized markets.
D) market socialism.

Question 21

1. Describe two ways that fair trade has benefitted small farmers.

Question 22

2. Define unequal exchange and provide an example.

Question 23

3. Describe one tension within the fair trade system today.

Question 24

1. A key strategy of the fair trade movement has been mainstreaming. First, describe the strategy of mainstreaming. Second, discuss its benefits. Third, examine it drawbacks and limitations.

Question 25

2. Fair trade has multiple identities. It is simultaneously a social movement, certification system, and a market for agrifood products. Using mainstreaming and the debate over whether to extend the fair trader system to plantations, write an essay that examines the tensions between these three identities.