ABSTRACT
Originating in the Latin American coffee sector, fair trade has emerged in recent decades as an important initiative seeking to harness global markets to foster empowerment-based development. This chapter analyzes Fairtrade International certification and its efforts to foster development in Latin America and the Caribbean. It demonstrates that Fairtrade can promote wellbeing and empowerment in the short-term by guaranteeing favourable commodity prices to farmers and more decent work for hired labourers, as well as a social premium to support community development. The availability of small farmer credit in Latin America and across the Global South is limited by the lack of infrastructure, geographical isolation, and volatility of agricultural markets.
