Introduction
Fair Trade (FT) is no longer a niche market,
appealing just to socially aware and middle-class
consumers. In 2007, worldwide FT retail values
exceeded e2.3 billion (FLO, 2007), with sales of
e730.8 million in the US and e704.3 million in the
UK (Max Havelaar France, 2008). European sales
increased by a factor of six times since 2002 (Krier,
2005; Max Havelaar France, 2008). Thus, not only
has FT become one of the fastest growing markets in
the world, but also Europe has emerged as one of the
biggest markets for FT products, with an estimated
65% of all global sales (Max Havelaar France, 2008).
In the European coffee market for example, FT
coffee is the only segment to have grown significantly
since 2000. Traditional coffee sales growth has been
weak even as FT coffee growth has risen constantly;