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"Fairtrade International believes it is important that farmers have access to Fairtrade staff locally, who understand their language and culture, and have knowledge and expertise in agricultural and development topics, and therefore our network of more than 50 liaison officers work to assist new producers coming into the Fairtrade system and to help with compliance among those already in the system." In the East African countries of Kenya and Tanzania, that liaison officer is Jennifer Mbuvi. She works out of an office in Nairobi, Kenya, and spends most of her time traveling through remote regions working directly with producers of a variety of Fairtrade crops including tea, nuts, flowers, and coffee. In her role, she sees firsthand the impact a quarter century of Fairtrade efforts have made on the ground. "I believe in the fair trade concept because it clearly gives an advantage over conventional forms of trade," Mbuvi says. "The worker has a better place to work in and is fairly remunerated, while the farmer can get a better price so that he has room to negotiate. Fairtrade, to me, opens up farmers to understand trade better as they get information, which has been previously hidden from them. "At the farm level, because of the standards which Fairtrade checks through an audit, production has been shown to increase and quality is subsequently better and better, all factors held constant," Mbuvi says. She also points to a number of co-ops she works with as examples of Fairtrade's success. "In Kaderes Peasant Development Company in Tanzania," she says, "the organization has seen growth in membership thanks to Fairtrade. They now see themselves more empowered to engage with buyers for long-term trade relationships, and also are getting better prices than before. [The] producer organizations are not just in it for gains today, but with improvements for their future survival." And while Fairtrade International focuses on small farmer organizations on the producing end, the system works with coffee companies of all sizes on the consumer side. "We want to work with every company that wants to work with us," says Hennings. "We're going to work with big companies, medium companies, small companies. We don't have any preference. We will work with anyone who shares our principles." But Lamb had specific praise for specialty-coffee roasters and cafés. "We appreciate all those small- and medium-size coffee companies and bars that have gone the extra mile to support fair trade," she says. "I do think that it's making the biggest impact for farmers. We really appreciate what the coffee industry has done for fair trade as a platform for moving forward." Reflecting on the last 25 years, Lamb says, "We can all feel immensely proud of what fair trade has accomplished, but restlessly dissatisfied with still so much to do." HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT WIN FREE STUFF FROM COMPANIES LIKE BARATZA, PRIMA, ESPRESSO PARTS, AND MORE JUST BY READING BARISTA MAGAZINE! =n]jqO]\f]k\Yq$nakal:YjaklYEY_Yraf]k:dg_lg answer a trivia question (psst! All the answers can be found in the latest issue of BMag!) Correct responses are entered into a drawing to WIN FREE STUFF! EVERY WEDNESDAY at www.baristamagazine.com/blog 70 barista magazine