Ethical Trade

Ethical trade means different things to different people. In particular, some people refer to “ethical trade” as an umbrella term for all types of business practices that promote more socially and/or environmentally responsible trade. Others use the term in a much narrower sense, referring specifically to the labour practices in a company’s supply chain.

Ethical trade became a growing issue during the 1990s because companies with global supply chains – in particular those in the clothing and food sectors – were coming under increasing pressure to ensure decent working conditions for the people who produce the goods they sell. A number of NGO and trade union campaigns raised consumers’ awareness of poor working conditions in factories and farms in developing countries – factories and farms that produced goods for leading companies in Europe and North America.

As a result, a growing number of companies have decided that they can no longer turn a blind eye, and have adopted some form of ethical sourcing policy to address growing public concern over supply chain labour issues.