Abstract
This paper critically examines the discourse surrounding fair trade mainstreaming, and discusses the potential avenues for the future of the social movement. The authors have a unique insight into the fair trade market having a combined experience of over 30 years in practice and 15 as fair trade scholars. The paper highlights a number of benefits of mainstreaming, not least the continued growth of the global fair trade market (tipped to top $7bn in 2012). However, the paper also highlights the negative consequences of mainstreaming on the long-term viability of fair trade as a credible ethical standard.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 161-189 |
| Number of pages | 29 |
| Journal | Business History |
| Volume | 55 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| Early online date | 14 Aug 2012 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2013 |
Keywords
- Sustainability
- fair trade
- mainstreaming
- fair trade organisations
- supermarket retailers
- multinational corporations
- co-optation
- dilution
- fair-washing