IN THE CHANGING ROOM of a garments shop a lady has just tried on a red T-shirt sporting the words "Stop sweat shops – support fair trade".

Gleefully, she says to the shop assistant "I've got to have it; it's only £1.49".

Another lady sits further back in the view reading a report in The Guardian headed "13p per hour wages behind cheap clothes".

The cartoon makes the point that people don't always think through the real complexities of issues they say they support. Misleading extravagant claims are all too easily believed.

In the following pages, we discuss why producers and the world needs a better deal.
But we also explode some misconceptions about what is enthusiastically called «Fair trade».

Please click the arrow below the cartoon to proceed.