Enhancing your dairy brand with fair trade

Why Fair Trade Dairy

Dairy farming in the U.S. has never been easy. Issues such as overproduction, volatile markets, and a rise in dairy alternatives have contributed to a sharp decline in the number of dairy farms across the country. Meanwhile, worker wellbeing and farm stewardship have declined as low prices place greater financial strain on dairy farms. Remaining competitive in the dairy sector today requires a new way of thinking and connecting with consumers.

Embracing Fair Trade Certified™ is a catalyst for change and can offer your business a path forward. Our unique model of standards, premium, and supply chain services enable you to support struggling dairy farmers and ensure safe and respectful working conditions for workers. Fair trade certification is also a way to reenergize the dairy category and resonate with the buying public.

Ready to begin your better business journey? Learn more about how becoming certified can help your dairy business.

Solidify your dairy supply chain resiliency.

Actively manage potential risk with rigorous fair trade standards ensuring safer working environments and improved conditions, wages, working hours, and benefits.
- Many dairy farmworkers are immigrants who lack legal protections. Fair trade ensures workers are recruited ethically, protects them from discrimination and ensures they are not subject to harassment or forced labor.
- Accidents on dairies can be severe. Fair trade requirements help to minimize risks.
Improve operational efficiency and performance.
- Get support and training in-field to help ensure compliance to Fair Trade Certified Standards.
- More sustainable income, better working conditions, and enhanced dialogue increases worker retention (less turnover and absenteeism) and engagement.
Improves workers’ lives and communities with Fair Trade Certified processes and Community Development Funds that contribute to long-term improvements.

Group of workers at Fair Trade Certified Dairy Farm

Advance your Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) goals

Accelerate your ESG / Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) goals.
- With over 120 KPIs tracking to the United Nations’ 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), your partnership with Fair Trade USA unlocks metrics that help deliver on environmental, social, and economic sustainability commitments.
Help accelerate B-Corp Certification.

Strengthen your brand

Mitigate potential reputational risks such as undetected labor violations in your supply chain.
Have confidence in the credibility of your commitments and demonstrate authenticity to consumers. Fair Trade USA is ISEAL Code Compliant. Our system has been independently evaluated against ISEAL’s Codes of Good Practice.
Ensure traceability and transparency with data.

Shopper looking at milk and dairy products in store

Build loyalty and meet consumer demand

65% of consumers recognize the Fair Trade Certified label.
78% of consumers trust the Fair Trade Certified label.
1 in 3 consumers are more likely to purchase with the Fair Trade Certified label.
75% of consumers indicate a third-party certification provides trust that a product/company is taking sustainable action.
Find more U.S. consumer insights here.

Fair Trade Dairy Makes a Difference

Farmworker input and feedback were a critical part of the development of our Agricultural Production Standard (APS), and we continue to ensure farmworker voices are heard as we continue to evolve, adapt, and scale the Fair Trade Certified Dairy program.

As part of our monitoring system, our team designed and implemented surveys of Fair Trade dairy workers and farmers at several dairy farms from 2020-2022. A total of 320 surveys were collected. Here are some of our findings.