Oxfam stands by Fairtrade campaign

from the Melbourne Herald Sun

This follows the story of a consumer group in Australia accusing OXFAM's fair trade label as misleading. OXFAM is now defending it's fair trade certification. - Kale

Free market think tank, the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA), has complained to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) that Oxfam has been misleading consumers about the brands helping farmers in developing nations.

The IPA today released a letter it received from the ACCC.

The letter said the ACCC had conveyed its view to Oxfam that some of its statements contained "absolute claims'', which could be at risk of breaching the Trade Practices Act if the Fairtrade certification process was not 100 per cent reliable.

But the letter said the ACCC would not take any action against Oxfam.

An ACCC spokesman said the commission had not found any of Oxfam's activity to be misleading.

An Oxfam spokeswoman said the file was now closed and the group stood by its Fairtrade campaign.

"Fairtrade aims to give farmers and producers a much fairer deal and we strongly believe in that,'' she said.

Link to full article. May expire in future.