Fairtrade boss criticises system

Fairtrade claims to monitor its system. It claims to monitor everything about its 5000 plus suppliers. And it claims that the monitoring is independent.
However, Paola Ghillani, a former director of Max Havelaar Switzerland (Max Havelaar is the French and Swiss branch of Fairtrade), spent four years as president of the Fair Trade Labelling Organizations (FLO), which draws up international fair trade standards, monitors certification and controls. She points out that products certified as fair trade do not always live up to the tag due to a lack of proper controls among smaller producers. She says Max Havelaar is seriously weak when it comes to checks.
‘I always said that checks should not be carried out by the FLO but by outside organisations. We need professional, neutral and independent inspectors,’ she said. ‘It is a process I was beginning to put in place in Switzerland. But everything came to a halt after I left,’ she added. www swissinfo.ch/eng/front/detail/ Fair_trade_firm_accused_of_foul_play.html?siteSect=105&sid=6936668&cKey=1154502191000
In 1999, after almost 10 years working in multinational companies, she took over as Managing Director of the Max Havelaar Foundation, a fair-trade organization based in Switzerland. During her time with the foundation, she also worked as a Member of the Board of FLO International (Fair Trade Labelling Organizations) and was elected Chair of the FLO’s Board in 2001, a position which she held until 2004.
Paola Ghillani is a Member of the Board of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). She also sits on the committees of various organizations, including for ethical investment funds.
""Les consommateurs sont prêts à payer plus cher pour des produits équitables"" www tsr.ch/tsr/index.html?siteSect=323201&sid.