There are four steps to certifying your product for Fairtrade:
1. Supply chain submission
Once you have a licence to use the FAIRTRADE mark, you will need to apply for your products to be certified by submitting supply chain information about them to us through our online system.
Submit the name and Fairtrade Labelling Organisation (FLO) ID of your immediate supplier for all the Fairtrade ingredients and raw materials involved.
We may also require you to submit the names and FLO IDs of all the participants in your supply chain, for all the Fairtrade ingredients. You will be notified of the level of detail we require in your supply chain once your licence application is approved.
2. Certifying your products
As part of your compliance with our Fairtrade Standards for UK Operators you must apply for certification from the Fairtrade Foundation for any new recipes, pack sizes and/or style codes which you wish to sell carrying the FAIRTRADE Mark. Visit the Fairtrade Standards for UK Operators and refer to Part 4 – requirements for product composition. All new products and updates to existing products will need to be approved by our Product Integrity team before they are marketed to your customers.
Where an ingredient can be Fairtrade, we would expect you to source it as Fairtrade unless there are exceptional circumstances (such as no availability of a product). Before you apply for the certification of any product please check whether there is a Fairtrade Product Standard equivalent for each of the raw ingredients in the product.
3. Using the FAIRTRADE Mark
Part of the Fairtrade certification process for your product is the submission and approval of all packaging artwork which carries the FAIRTRADE Mark.
Once you are licensed, you will be issued with the manual and FAIRTRADE Mark graphic files relevant for your product category. The manual explains how to ensure your artwork is compliant, including how to use the word Fairtrade, before uploading it for review and approval onto our online system.
Please note that the FAIRTRADE Mark is a registered trademark of Fairtrade International and it must always be approved by Fairtrade prior to publication.
4. Selling your products internationally
If you wish to sell your Fairtrade certified products into international markets, approval must be sought from the National Fairtrade Organisation in the relevant destination country. The Fairtrade Foundation will process this approval on your behalf. Please indicate your intention to sell cross-border on your product application to request approval.