Fairtrade producers overview

The number of Fairtrade certified producer organizations – whether smallholder farming cooperatives, plantations with hired labour, or other settings – is expanding each year. This means more farmers and workers want to be part of Fairtrade and the benefits it can bring to them.

Ahmad and Darmon are coffee farmers at the Fairtrade Koptan Gayo Megah Berseri cooperative, Indonesia.
Image © Nathalie Bertrams

More than 1,900 producer organisations and more than 2 million farmers and workers are part of the Fairtrade system.

20601 Coffeefarmerpremiumindonesia 425 — Hidayah picks coffee at the Fairtrade certified Koperasi Baithul Qiradh Baburrayyan (KBQB), Indonesia.
Image © Nathalie Bertrams

Producers know what they need

Agriculture isn't easy. Price swings, climate change, and limited access to credit create pressure on producers, who often struggle to stretch the earnings from one harvest to the next.

The Fairtrade Premium and earnings from the Fairtrade Minimum Price can help counter such challenges.

The Koperasi Baithul Qiradh Baburrayyan (KBQB) – a Fairtrade coffee cooperative in Indonesia – has invested Premium funds in farmers' trainings, an emergency social fund, and new assets such as land for nurseries. After an earthquake struck their region, some Premium was spent on cash and rice disbursements. Other targets for investment included new seedlings, planting shade trees, and more environmental education.

The producers know best what they need to succeed. 'I need agriculture tools, such as a grass trimmer, sprayer, and organic fertilizer. With these supports I believe I will earn enough for my children,' says Hidayah, a small-scale farmer and worker at KBQB.

Fairtrade requires democratic decisions about the distribution of Premium funds, so people like Hidayah have a say in investments that can shape their future.