Every year, over the past 15 years, new major product vendors have made significant commitments to sourcing – and selling – retail products that embody stringent ethical qualities, such as greater fairness in pricing to the original producers of ingredients for this Ben & Jerry’s ice cream (a Unilever company). Ben & Jerry’s committed in 2010 to use only Fair Trade certified ingredients (anything that is FT certifiable) in all flavors of its ice cream in all markets worldwide.*
This is just one example of the rapidly growing signs of commitment by global corporations to yield to civil society pressure to undertake major improvements in their social and environmental accountability, adopting standards assured by credible third-party independent verification of compliance.
By 2050 the world will encounter that this private governance of corporate behavior, driven by competitive markets, will force even the largest (and most monopolistic!) global firms to yield to civil society pressure, decreasing environmental damage, improving human rights practices, and reducing poverty worldwide.
*The label is the US label for the global Fairtrade movement. The story can be found at:
http://www.inc.com/news/articles/2010/02/ben-and-jerrys-goes-fully-fairtrade.html.
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Food and Beverage Packaging, 12 May 2010
Author: Michael E Conroy
