Viewpoint
Abdelgawad, Walid
Viewpoint - 2007.
60
For the first time, France has enacted a package of legal measures recognizing fair trade, and it has become one of the first developed countries with detailed regulations in that field. This package consists of both legislative measures (Article 60 of the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Act and its executive order) and soft law regulations (such as the Agreement on Fair Trade of the French Standardization Association AFNOR). The choice of the legislators focused on the public recognition by a national commission of the organizations whose main activity is the implementation and monitoring of fair trade standards. Multinationals were kept out of this procedure. French law seems to meet the requirements of fair trade organizations, especially as regards the definition of standards for fair trade as inferred from practice. The various dimensions of fair trade (economic, social, environmental, and political) were taken into account. This positive outcome seems to be the result of the mobilization of civil society players in order to urge the French public authorities to implement the standards and rules established from practice. However, French regulation is in some respects insufficient and irrelevant as it is out of step with the recent practice of private actors. It subscribes to a restrictive view of fair trade as limited to North-South international trade. Moreover, there is no clear recognition of the link between fair trade and the social economy. Lastly, there is no guarantee that the legal procedure concerning the accreditation of fair trade players will offer effective protection for consumers. Despite these weaknesses, French law has been welcomed as a successful step as it has the main advantage of preserving basic fair trade principles and standards and thus safeguarding the gains of forty years of struggle on the ground by international civil society.
Viewpoint - 2007.
60
For the first time, France has enacted a package of legal measures recognizing fair trade, and it has become one of the first developed countries with detailed regulations in that field. This package consists of both legislative measures (Article 60 of the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Act and its executive order) and soft law regulations (such as the Agreement on Fair Trade of the French Standardization Association AFNOR). The choice of the legislators focused on the public recognition by a national commission of the organizations whose main activity is the implementation and monitoring of fair trade standards. Multinationals were kept out of this procedure. French law seems to meet the requirements of fair trade organizations, especially as regards the definition of standards for fair trade as inferred from practice. The various dimensions of fair trade (economic, social, environmental, and political) were taken into account. This positive outcome seems to be the result of the mobilization of civil society players in order to urge the French public authorities to implement the standards and rules established from practice. However, French regulation is in some respects insufficient and irrelevant as it is out of step with the recent practice of private actors. It subscribes to a restrictive view of fair trade as limited to North-South international trade. Moreover, there is no clear recognition of the link between fair trade and the social economy. Lastly, there is no guarantee that the legal procedure concerning the accreditation of fair trade players will offer effective protection for consumers. Despite these weaknesses, French law has been welcomed as a successful step as it has the main advantage of preserving basic fair trade principles and standards and thus safeguarding the gains of forty years of struggle on the ground by international civil society.
Réseaux sociaux