FLO standards need to be met by producer groups, traders, processors, wholesalers and retailers:


There are two sets of generic producer standards, one for small farmers and one for workers on plantations and in factories. The first set applies to smallholders organised in cooperatives or other organisations with a democratic, participative structure. The second set applies to organised workers, whose employers pay decent wages, guarantee the right to join trade unions and provide good housing where relevant. On plantations and in factories, minimum health and safety as well as environmental standards must be complied with, and no child or forced labour may occur.


As Fairtrade is also about development, the generic standards distinguish between minimum requirements, which producers must meet to be certified Fairtrade, and progress requirements that encourage producer organisations to continuously improve working conditions and product quality, to increase the environmental sustainability of their activities and to invest in the development of the organisations and their producers/workers.


Trading standards stipulate that traders have to:
• pay a price to producers that covers the costs of   sustainable production and living;
• pay a premium that producers can invest in   development;
• partially pay in advance, when producers
  ask for it;
• sign contracts that allow for long-term planning and   sustainable production practices.


Finally, there are a few product-specific Fairtrade standards for each product that determine such things as minimum quality, price, and processing requirements that have to be complied with.

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