Overview of Fair Trade
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Fair Trade began in the 1940s as a small collection of European and North American organizations that focused on aiding marginalized producers by providing a market to sell basic crafts and goods.
These small organizations focused their efforts on importing crafts from countries such as Angola and Nicaragua.
In the 1960s, “alternative trade organizations” such as Oxfam formed in Europe and started distributing imported products through a variety of small “worldshops.”
The movement sought to alleviate poverty among distressed populations that some considered to have resulted from growing globalization and trade imbalances.