Living income

Earning a decent livelihood is a human right. A living income is central to sustainability – farmers must be able to support their families while farming in a way that protects and replenishes the planet and their communities.

Living Income Project Côte d Ivoire
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A living income is defined as sufficient income to afford a decent standard of living for all household members – including a nutritious diet, clean water, decent housing, education, health care and other essential needs, plus a little extra for emergencies and savings – once farm costs are covered.

Just being Fairtrade certified doesn’t guarantee that farmers will earn a living income – it depends on multiple factors, and on everyone playing their part, from farmers, to cooperatives, to businesses, governments, and shoppers.

This is why our living income strategy outlines what needs to be done beyond business as usual and identifies key responsibilities to make this happen. Fairtrade is committed to discover what really works o improve farmers’ incomes and to sharing what we learn along the way.

Read our latest Living Income Progress Report.

How Fairtrade works towards living incomes

Reaching a living income requires the farm producing enough, and the farmer being paid a price that reflects the true cost of sustainable farming. Other income-generating activities are often necessary to reduce risk, and make up additional income needed to make up for a very small farm plot size, or a large household, for instance. For specific regions and commodities we have also developed the Fairtrade Living Income Reference Prices to give further guidance.

Our living income strategy focuses on six interdependent areas:

Standards

Sustainable pricing

Producer support programmes

Customised business services

Monitoring, evaluation and learning

Advocacy

Everyone has a role to play to make living incomes for farmers a reality. You too!

  • Farmers are primarily responsible for increasing farm productivity by using sustainable agricultural practices.
  • Producer organisations create value for their members, for instance delivering training to improve farming practices or diversify income sources, or reduce farmers’ out-of-pocket costs by providing subsidized inputs.
  • Companies are responsible for sustainable purchasing practices, including establishing long-term sourcing relations and paying prices to farmers that support a living income.
  • Policy makers can drive collective action on a large scale by putting in place laws and policies that require products to be grown or made sustainably – including that farmers are earning a living income.
  • Consumers have a choice every time they go to a store. They can always choose to support products which strive for a better and fair income for farmers. Fairtrade products are easily identifiable.

Watch this video to learn moreabout how these roles work together.

Contact us for more information on working with Fairtrade along the shared path towards living incomes for farmers. It’s the right thing to do – for farmers, for rural communities, and for a more just and sustainable world.

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