This isn't about farmers vs farm workers.
It's about you. Everyone in the supply chain deserves fairness - from the people growing the crop to those harvesting it. When you choose products with the Fairtrade Mark, you back sustainable farming, decent work, and fair relationships across the chain - farmers, farm workers, and buyers alike.
(Fairtrade International. Risk Map – Salient Issues: Child Rights and Labour Practices Across Commodities. Accessed October 2025. Available at: https://riskmap.fairtrade.net/salient-issues/child-rights)
Where do you live in South Africa?
Do you know what a farm worker earns per month?
There are around 500 000 farm workers in South Africa. From 1 March 2025, the minimum wage for farm and domestic workers in South Africa rose to R28.79/hr (a 4.4% increase). That's about R 4 985 for a 9-hour working day. Yet many still don't receive this legal minimum.
Agri SA (2025). Published March 2025. Available at: https://agrisa.org.za/agri-sa/agrisa-responds-to-the-4-4-increase-in-the-national-minimum-wage-for-farm-workers-in-south-africa-get-insights-into-the-decision-and-its-impact/
Do you know what a farm worker earns per month?
There are around 500 000 farm workers in South Africa. From 1 March 2025, the minimum wage for farm and domestic workers in South Africa rose to R28.79/hr (a 4.4% increase). That's about R 4 985 for a 9-hour working day. Yet many still don't receive this legal minimum.
Agri SA (2025). Published March 2025. Available at: https://agrisa.org.za/agri-sa/agrisa-responds-to-the-4-4-increase-in-the-national-minimum-wage-for-farm-workers-in-south-africa-get-insights-into-the-decision-and-its-impact/
How familiar are you with this logo?
Six-year-olds are part of the cost to keep chocolate cheap.
In Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana, some 1.56 million children work in cocoa production. Many do this under conditions that endanger their safety and education. Choosing Fairtrade helps prevent child labour and promotes safe, child-friendly farming practices.
U.S. Department of Labor (2022). Child Labor in Cocoa Production: Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana. Washington, DC: Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB). Available at: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/our-work/child-forced-labor-trafficking/child-labor-cocoa
Six-year-olds are part of the cost to keep chocolate cheap.
In Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana, some 1.56 million children work in cocoa production. Many do this under conditions that endanger their safety and education. Choosing Fairtrade helps prevent child labour and promotes safe, child-friendly farming practices.
U.S. Department of Labor (2022). Child Labor in Cocoa Production: Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana. Washington, DC: Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB). Available at: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/our-work/child-forced-labor-trafficking/child-labor-cocoa
How would you describe your coffee ritual?
It's okay - your kids will pick up the tab.
Water pollution, biodiversity loss, soil degradation, deforestation - these are real consequences of unsustainable farming. In West Africa's cocoa belt, increasing heat stress is putting yields and ecosystems at risk. When you support Fairtrade farming, you help safeguard the land and climate for those who come after us.
Reuters (2024). More Collaboration Needed as Cocoa Firms Battle Deforestation and Child Labour Risks. Published 19 August 2024. Available at: https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/society-equity/more-collaboration-needed-cocoa-firms-battle-deforestation-child-labour-risks-2024-08-19/
It's okay - your kids will pick up the tab.
Water pollution, biodiversity loss, soil degradation, deforestation - these are real consequences of unsustainable farming. In West Africa's cocoa belt, increasing heat stress is putting yields and ecosystems at risk. When you support Fairtrade farming, you help safeguard the land and climate for those who come after us.
Reuters (2024). More Collaboration Needed as Cocoa Firms Battle Deforestation and Child Labour Risks. Published 19 August 2024. Available at: https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/society-equity/more-collaboration-needed-cocoa-firms-battle-deforestation-child-labour-risks-2024-08-19/
How do you feel about tea?
Notes of blackberry. Hints of oak. Barriers to healthcare.
98.5% of South African farm workers receive no contributions to health insurance. With public health services thin in many rural areas, this gap has serious consequences. Choosing Fairtrade supports models that encourage safer work environments, fair pay, and community investments in health.
(Visser, M. & Ferrer, S. (2015). Farm Workers' Living and Working Conditions in South Africa: Key Trends, Emergent Issues, and Underlying Structural Problems. University of Cape Town & University of KwaZulu-Natal. Commissioned by the International Labour Organization (ILO). Available at: https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/wages/minimum-wages/WCMS_436204/lang--en/index.htm)
Notes of blackberry. Hints of oak. Barriers to healthcare.
98.5% of South African farm workers receive no contributions to health insurance. With public health services thin in many rural areas, this gap has serious consequences. Choosing Fairtrade supports models that encourage safer work environments, fair pay, and community investments in health.
(Visser, M. & Ferrer, S. (2015). Farm Workers' Living and Working Conditions in South Africa: Key Trends, Emergent Issues, and Underlying Structural Problems. University of Cape Town & University of KwaZulu-Natal. Commissioned by the International Labour Organization (ILO). Available at: https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/wages/minimum-wages/WCMS_436204/lang--en/index.htm)
Between us friends, how much wine do you actually drink?
Free toy inside?
In Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, over 1.5 million children are estimated to work in cocoa production - many in hazardous conditions. Some studies suggest as many as 45% of children living in cocoa areas are involved in farming tasks. Fairtrade works through community programmes to protect children from exploitation and promote education.
Reuters (2025). Ensure Cocoa Farmers' Children Go to School? Try Educating Their Mothers First. Published 1 September 2025. Available at: https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/society-equity/ensure-cocoa-farmers-children-go-school-try-educating-their-mothers--ecmii-2025-09-01/
Free toy inside?
In Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, over 1.5 million children are estimated to work in cocoa production - many in hazardous conditions. Some studies suggest as many as 45% of children living in cocoa areas are involved in farming tasks. Fairtrade works through community programmes to protect children from exploitation and promote education.
Reuters (2025). Ensure Cocoa Farmers' Children Go to School? Try Educating Their Mothers First. Published 1 September 2025. Available at: https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/society-equity/ensure-cocoa-farmers-children-go-school-try-educating-their-mothers--ecmii-2025-09-01/
What best describes your relationship with chocolate?
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Remember this logo? It’s the Fairtrade logo. Check all the items you usually buy that have it on the packaging. Be honest here! If you don't know, don't tick any boxes – click submit!
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Farms are disappearing
A third of our natural ecosystems are under threat, endangering thousands of species and the critical free services they provide to farms. Basically? Your favourite bottle of wine won’t be around forever if things don’t change.
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) (2010): Agriculture: Facts & Trends South Africa, South Africa.
Farms are disappearing
A third of our natural ecosystems are under threat, endangering thousands of species and the critical free services they provide to farms. Basically? Your favourite bottle of wine won’t be around forever if things don’t change.
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) (2010): Agriculture: Facts & Trends South Africa, South Africa.
When you decide what to buy, where do you fall on the slider below?
I don’t really look at labels (and don’t intend to start)
I look carefully at labels to ensure I’m buying ethically