SAN FRANCISCO—The Institute for Marketecology (IMO) certified its first Fair for Life Fair Trade-certified aloe vera on the U.S. market. The juice from the leaf of the aloe vera plant is used as an ingredient in nutraceuticals and personal care products. In March 2009, having met IMO’s stringent Fair Trade, social and environmental standards required for Fair for Life Social & Fair Trade certification, Florida Food Products now offers Fair Trade-certified aloe vera to manufacturers worldwide.
Tom Brown, vice president/owner,Florida Food Products, said: “In the beginning five years the operation was small with limited sources. Over the last 10 to 12 years, employment has more than doubled. When running the factory and farms, total employment including managers is about 65 people. When weeding and harvesting our farms there are about 25 more workers employed. In addition, the self-employed vendor growers are at times employing additional workers for farm activities, harvesting and weeding. This is the direct activity of our operations—most of the employment gains have been at the vendor grower level.”
The system of measuring the performance towards the Fair for Life Social & Fair Trade Certification Program allows gradual improvement and demonstration of achievements to the public.