The vision of the Fairtrade movement is to put justice and sustainable development at the heart of trade structures and practices so that everyone, through their work, can maintain a decent and dignified livelihood and develop their full potential.

To develop and achieve this vision Fairtrade works with some of the worlds poorest communities and creates trading structures that are based on the principles of equity and transparency. A product that has been certified by Fairtrade means that the producers will be getting a fair price for it. A premium is also paid to the communities that benefit from Fairtrade and this allows them to invest in essential infrastructure projects.

Sales of Fairtrade products have grown from £16.7m per annum in 1998 to £712.6m in 2008. Globally, consumers spent £1.6bn on Fairtrade certified products in 2007 (47% increase on 2006) and this has directly benefitted over 7m people - farmers, workers and their families in 58 developing countries. So by buying Fairtrade you can, as an individual, really help to make a difference.