Mester Grønn blooms with purpose: Fairtrade Norway partnership drives impressive growth
Mester Grønn is the largest flower company, and the biggest importer of Fairtrade certified flowers, in Norway. Mester Grønn is Fairtrade Norway’s largest licensee, and imports Fairtrade flowers from several East African countries, especially Kenya. Since 2005, the company has been clear about its motivation for being a Fairtrade partner: contribute to improved working conditions, decent pay, and equal rights.
Background
Mester Grønn was established in 1983 by the Ølstad brothers, and since its early days, ethical and responsible trade has been among its core values. Mester Grønn began trading with Tanzanian flower farms in 1999, and later visits to their suppliers left a profound impression. The Mester Grønn delegation was not satisfied with the standards that they saw within the flower sector – there were several challenges, particularly related to working conditions and women’s rights. The flower farms acknowledged the need for improvement and initiated a certification process in the early 2000s.
Today, almost all of Mester Grønn’s African suppliers are Fairtrade certified. The flower farms they first began cooperating with are still important suppliers. Mester Grønn can proudly say that they are not only the biggest importer of Fairtrade certified flowers in Norway, but also Fairtrade Norway’s largest licensee. Thirteen percent of everything sold in Mester Grønn's stores is Fairtrade certified. Approximately 50 percent of what they import from Africa carries the Fairtrade label, even though almost 100 percent of the flowers come from Fairtrade certified farms.
The partnership
In addition to being Fairtrade Norway’s largest licensee, Mester Grønn is also one of Fairtrade Norway’s first partners, having been a licensee since 2005. A key to such a success lies in long-term, close cooperation, with clear requirements and expectations from both sides.
Each year, Mester Grønn imports millions of Fairtrade certified flowers contributing to safer labor environment for thousands of workers. The CEO of Mester Grønn, Erling Ølstad, emphasizes that the core values within the company motivates the Norwegian employees and contributes to a good working environment, also in Norway. Mester Grønn has clear values and plans for the long term when it comes to sustainability and ethical responsibility.
The majority of workers in the flower industry in East Africa are women. Ølstad highlights the importance of strengthening women and women’s rights in the flower industry. On Fairtrade certified plantations, the women are entitled to a three-month maternity leave, as well as breastfeeding breaks. It is also prohibited for pregnant and breastfeeding women to handle pesticides at the plantations.
An opportunity for change
Mester Grønn has proven to be a reliable partner also in times of crisis. For instance, when the pandemic started, the entire flower trade came to a halt for a period. Orders were canceled across Europe, but Mester Grønn decided to honor their Fairtrade contracted volume and continued paying the Fairtrade Premium. This was extremely important for the workers on the farms.
“The workers are proud of the partnership, they know us, and thus it becomes important for them to deliver quality every time,” says Ølstad. “This is also noticed by the customers in Norway — they simply find that the (Fairtrade) flowers last longer.”
The clear environmental requirements in the Fairtrade Standard also play a role, and the focus on plant health, biological control, and especially soil health has gained great attention.
In addition to fulfilling the Fairtrade Standards, including paying the Minimum Price and the Fairtrade Premium, Mester Grønn has also contributed to complementary projects. One such project includes Fairtrade’s Women’s School of Leadership in Kenya, co-funded by NORAD (the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation).
The project aims to improve women’s empowerment and promote a safe working environment for flower farm workers in Kenya. The Women’s School of Leadership also seeks to boost the self-confidence and self-esteem of women. The school seeks to help women by conveying their rights and enhancing their farmer and financial skills. It also facilitates women to be able to help each other. The participants achieve skills and resources, contributing to the development of their cooperatives and additional income-generating activities. The participants have gained heightened awareness and knowledge regarding gender, human rights and leadership.
The project strives to secure sustainability and further capacity building through the Trainer of Trainer (ToT) model. The model seeks to ensure the training of farmers for the years ahead and offer technical support when needed. The ToT model also works to establish recruitment of new participants, training of management and governmental staff through the Women’s School of Leadership. Mester Grønn has committed to extended their support period for another three years.
Consumer Response
Despite macroeconomic challenges, inflation in the domestic market, and an overall decline in the flower market in recent years, Mester Grønn has managed to consistently increase sales of Fairtrade flowers. When asked how they have managed to navigate through these challenges and maintain success, they respond that it is the customers who decide, it's as simple as that. When customers experience good products, they return for more.
Many Fairtrade customers are also conscious of their choices and know that they are contributing to fair working and wage conditions in the producer countries. In addition to the demand from the market, Mester Grønn also actively makes choices for the customers defining certain product lines and campaigns as Fairtrade only. Mester Grønn helps consumers make more sustainable choices when purchasing flowers.
