Well Made Fair Trade My and Other Home Furniture Helen Greathead
Fair trade furniture Furniture is big business Today many companies are starting to look at how furniture can be made in a way that is fair to workers and safe for the environment Why buy fair trade Around the world many problems are caused through furniture production Workers are often poorly paid and endure poor working conditions such as health and safety dangers from the chemicals they use in glue or paint The World Fair Trade Organization WFTO is an international group that believes in fair trade practices Companies who belong to the WFTO pay their workers fairly help to care for local communities and make sure that nothing they do damages wildlife or the environment The Fair Trade Furniture Company is a member of the WFTO Its furniture is made in Indonesia using natural materials The company’s workers are paid a fair wage and have health and education programs 4
What is best to buy When buying new furniture it is important to know what it is made of and where it has come from This is known as the supply chain When your family is buying a new item of furniture look carefully at any labels or logos Does it have a WFTO label or a Forest Stewardship Council FSC logo The FSC is an American company that makes sure trees used to make furniture have come from forests that are well-managed and sustainable see page 20 What can I do This book will explain how fair trade programs help workers to make a decent living improve working conditions and protect the environment and wildlife It will give you ideas about what you can do to help when choosing furniture with your family and how to recycle old or unwanted furniture The FSC protects the world’s forests as well as local communities and wildlife This map shows the places mentioned in the book that are involved in fair trade projects Canada USA Mexico Africa Senegal Brazil Ghana China India Nepal Indonesia Pakistan Thailand Argentina 5
