A Look Into FairTrade

What is Fairtrade, how does it strive to make a difference and is it effective in so doing?

          Yesterday we had an interesting lecture that taught me more about Fairtrade.  Fairtrade is an organized social movement to help ensure that the farmers and workers at the bottom of the trade chain get a fair share of the benefits of trade.  Farmers can choose to sell on Fairtrade terms, which in turn provide them with a better deal, and improved terms of trade.  It allows the consumers to choose a way to reduce poverty while they buy products. 

Once a product carries the Fairtrade mark it means that both the producers and traders have met the Fairtrade standards.  I thought the presenter did a good job at explaining how there is a minimum price of trade that has to be met, even if the market price for the item falls bellow that price.  This guarantees that producers will still receive prices that cover their average costs of sustainable production, making sure they would never lose money from low trading prices.  This makes a huge difference to the farmers and gives them a safeguard against fluctuations in market pricing. 

Another important way that Fairtrade makes a difference in the lives of the producers is through an additional Fairtrade Premium.  This is paid on top of the trading price and is used to invest in projects that enhance social, economic and environmental development in the community.  During the lecture we learned about some of the ways that premiums were used to benefit the producers and the community they live in.  Projects included creating a basketball court for the community’s youth, which provided a way to have fun that did not include the use alcohol or drugs, and building a kindergarten center that allowed mothers to have a day care system allowing them to continue making income for their families.   

The presenter told us some of the critiques of the Fairtrade system.  From what she said, which included some critiques of not being able to strictly control the use of child labor on some of the farms, I believe that the negatives do not outweigh the positives of Fairtrade.  I think Fairtrade is effective at changing the lives of smallholder farmers.    

Relevant Websites:

1)   http://www.fairtrade.net/aims-of-fairtrade-standards.html

2)   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_trade

3)   http://www.fairtradeusa.org/

4)   http://www.wfto.com/

5)   http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/

6)   http://fairtrade-maerket.dk/

Image Citations:

1)   http://www.foodnavigator.com/Market-Trends/Fairtrade-demand-spurs-rapid-increase-in-supply

2) http://www1.uwe.ac.uk/aboutus/visionandmission/sustainability/fairtrade/whyuweembracesfairtrade.aspx

3)   http://www.fairtradelabel.org.za/whatis/fairtrade-in-the-world.6.html

Discussion on Wine and Culture

 a) Reflect on our Field Study to Kelleris and b) discuss the important ways in which wine has and continues to play a role in human society and culture.

During our field study to Kelleris I learned more about making wine and the tradition behind Danish wine.  It was fun to get to go out and see all of the grape vines that made the wine we would later taste.  I found it interesting to hear about the background of making wine in Denmark and how they selectively chose different plants to breed into one that would have a good season time in Denmark’s chilly weather.  I have never been to a wine vineyard before and was not aware of how small the one we went to was.  It wasn’t until I asked him how many bottles the vineyard produced each year, that I understood that it was not large.  I think something that really stood out to me was that he had one year where the bad conditions led them to only produce 40 bottles of wine.  It really shows how different weather patterns can change the outcome of the yield.  It reminded me of when he talked about the plant disease that caused a lot of the wine grapes to be ruined.  I also thought that was interesting when he talked about how quickly the bacteria spread because it could travel by air from different vineyard to vineyard. 

There are many important ways that wine plays a role in human society and culture.  Throughout history wine has been used as a drink and thought of as an aphrodisiac. In ancient Greece wine was used during symposium (which means ‘drinking together’) where Greeks would mix wine and intellectual discussions.  Another way wine plays a role in society was demonstrated on our field study when we had a wine tasting.  I also did a wine tasting in Italy over my long study break. It was a great way to experience Italian culture and hang out with some friends over wine and cold cuts of meat.   Wine is a great drink to pair up with dinner and lets people relax and be more open in conversation.  

Wine has also been proven to improve your health, in moderation.  Red wines are known to contain many beneficial antioxidants such as polyphenol and resveratrol that have cardio-protective effects and anti-cancer properties.

Relevant websites:

11)   http://facts.randomhistory.com/2009/08/21_wine.html

22)   https://www.wiine.me/10-amazing-facts-about-wine/ 

33)   http://interestingthings.info/food-and-beverages/10-interesting-facts-wine-know.html

44)   http://denmark.dk/en/lifestyle/food-drink/winegrowing-at-the-northern-limit/

55)   http://www.kellerisvingaard.dk/kelleris-vineyard.html

Image citations:

11)   http://www.createawine.com/About%20Us.htm

22)   http://www.agoracosmopolitan.com/news/Business/2013/04/02/5675.html

33)   http://theysmell.com/six-health-benefits-wine/

Influential Plants of Power

Which are the ‘Top Three’ most important / influential plants of power today (and I don't necessarily mean by the amount or value produced).  Justify and explain your answer.

I believe that today soybeans are in the top three most influential plants of power.  It is a significant and cheap source of protein for animal feeds and produces more protein per acre than most other uses of land.  Traditional food uses of soybeans include soy sauce, tempeh, soymilk and tofu.  Soy protein can also be a great substitute for animal products because the plant offers a ‘complete’ protein profile. Which means that soybeans contain all eight of the amino acids essential for human health.  Not only are soybeans nutritious for humans, but they also can act as a natural fertilizer for soil.     

Another plant I consider to be very influential today is corn.   It is the most produced grain in the world.  Corn is a staple food for a large part of the world and is also used for ethanol production and as feed for livestock such as beef, poultry and pork.  It is used to make high fructose corn syrup, which is the predominant sweetener used in processed foods and beverages in the United States.  Corn is a great source of carbohydrates, protein, vitamin B, minerals and iron.  With the total corn production at 13.8 billion bushels in 2013, it is clear to see that corn is one of the most influential plants today.

I also consider rice to be a very influential plant in modern times.   Almost half of the world’s population eat rice as part of their staple diet.  This number is also expected to grow by 50 percent by 2030.  Eleven percent of the world’s arable land is used for rice cultivation.   Three of the world’s most populous nations are rice-based societies- China, India, and Indonesia.   Americans are also eating twice as much rice as they did ten years ago.  With rice accounting for 20 percent of the world’s dietary energy supply I believe it to be an influential plant of power.

Relevant Websites:

11)   http://www.americasfarmers.com/learn-about-farming/corn/

22)   http://www.soyatech.com/corn_facts.htm

33)   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_fructose_corn_syrup

44)   http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/blog/september-2013-usda-crop-production-summary

55)   http://ricefest.com/all-about-rice/facts-about-rice/

66)   http://www.tilda.com/us/rice-facts

77)   http://www.usriceproducers.com/files/187_Rice%20Facts.pdf

Image Citations:

11)   http://www.iita.org/soybean

22)   http://philippa-pippasplace.blogspot.dk/2010/05/fun-corn-facts.html

33)   http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/crux/2013/08/02/toxin-found-in-most-u-s-rice-causes-genetic-damage/#.VHCTXvTF9uA

Food Security

Discuss the current threats and possible solutions to food security.  Within your answer identify the problems associated with the possible solutions. 

The threat to food security is one of the biggest challenges the human race will face in the upcoming century.  Some of the main threats include world population growth, the increase for the demand for food, food price, and the disappearance of the variety of agricultural plant species.  There is also a limit to the available land to produce food on and an increase in the area of scarcity water.  

Over the past 50 years the global population has increased from 3 to 6.8 billion people.  This trend is predicted to continue in the future years creating a rapid growth of the world’s population.  With this increase in population there will also be an increase for the demand for food in the growing world.  According to the World Conservation Union, one out of every eight-plant species is at risk of extinction, because of loss of habitat, pressure from non-native species and over harvesting. All of these threats to food security need to be addressed in the upcoming years if the world wants to avoid a food crisis.  

Some possible solutions include increasing production and the access to food through a more sustainable agricultural system.  One problem with this solution being that the world would have to have farmers that were very successful at every level of production.  Even though this should be considered an optimistic goal it might not be reasonable to only focus on this when addressing food security.  

Another possible solution is for all of us to eat less meat.  Cutting back on the environmental and time costs of meat production would provide greater food security around the world.  Unfortunately one problem behind this possible solution is that as GDP’s across the globe continue to rise, people who weren’t able to eat meat before now use it frequently in their diet.  It would be a great day when everyone would cut back or even cut meat out of their diets, but I just do not see that happening any time soon.  

Relevant Websites:

1)http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/jun/04/eat-less-meat-food-security

2)http://www.cargill.com/wcm/groups/public/@ccom/documents/document/na3059569.pdf

3) http://www.sustainabletable.org/280/food-security-food-access

4) http://www.actionagainsthunger.org/impact/food-security-livelihoods

5)http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/inet/images.nsf/vluimages/youth-and-children/$file/food-security-strategy-e.pdf

6) http://www.twnside.org.sg/title2/susagri/susagri059.htm

Image Citations:

1)http://www.foodnavigator-asia.com/Policy/China-lays-out-plan-for-global-action-on-food-security

2) http://www.paulchefurka.ca/Population%20and%20Food%20Production.html

3)http://agricultureworldsystem.blogspot.dk/2013/02/sustainable-agriculture-definition.html

4)http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/jun/04/eat-less-meat-food-security