Ben & Jerry's Goes Fair Trade

Fans of Ben & Jerry's ice cream generally assumed that the company's ethical stance would be wrung out by the Unilever Corporation after the company acquired the brand in 2000.

It turns out, however, that when a company's customer base is inspired by its ethics, the corporation that buys it will find it wise to let the brand continue its focus on social responsibility. Exhibit A: 10 years after its acquisition, Ben & Jerry's has just announced plans to make its products entirely fair trade.

The company's "entire global flavor portfolio" will be composed of Fair Trade Certified ingredients by 2013, which will require reworking the production of as many as 121 flavors. Fair trade cooperatives representing more than 27,000 farmers will serve as Ben & Jerry's allies in this process.

Such ethical policies and practices have not only been key to Ben & Jerry's popularity, but are also vital in making sure the US food system can benefit all who supply it. As Tim Newman writes on the activist site Change.org, "Fair Trade is a major step in the right direction to ensuring that farmers get a fair price for their products, worker rights are protected, and farming communities receive important benefits."

Ben & Jerry's has actually been using some Fair Trade Certified ingredients since 2005, but co-founder Jerry Greenfield felt that only going part way wasn't enough. He believes it's a question of simple fairness.

"Fair Trade is about making sure people get their fair share of the pie," he said. "The whole concept of Fair Trade goes to the heart of our values and sense of right and wrong. Nobody wants to buy something that was made by exploiting somebody else.”

Photo by Francesca™ via Flickr.