Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the benefits of Fairtrade certification for producers in developing countries.

DFID is long standing supporter of Fairtrade. Fairtrade plays an important role in helping producers around the world improve their lives in a sustainable way; ensuring farmers receive fair prices for their products, workers receive better wages and by making agricultural practices more sustainable. Fairtrade provides a minimum price for sales, as well as a premium, and certifies smallholder and plantation supply chains, as well as extractives such as gold. Producers received an estimated £123 million premium as a result of being part of a Fairtrade supply chain in 2015.