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Any company can have their products branded with the «Fairtrade» mark so long as they can show fulfilment of a number of auditable criteria that include some basic human rights for growers, fixed pre-agreed prices for commodities, and social provisions paid for by means of a social premium.
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To carry the «Fairtrade» mark, brand owners also have to pay a licensing fee to the owners of the «Fairtrade» brand (in the UK that is the Fairtrade Foundation, which in turn is controlled by certain large NGOs and self-styled «fair trade» companies).
Permission to use the mark is only given when the fairtrade labelling organization is satisfied that sourcing arrangements comply with their standards and approved producers.
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But it is very important to understand that the mark generally only considers the raw materials within a product, and not the onward production process – even though that is where most of the value of finished products is added.
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