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Fighting the Banana Wars and Other Fairtrade Battles | 
 enlarge | Author: Harriet Lamb
Publisher: Rider & Co
Category: Book
List Price: £10.99
Buy New: £3.45
You Save: £7.54 (69%)
New (28) Used (5) from £3.45
Avg. Customer Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 134537
Media: Paperback
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.7
ISBN: 1846040833
EAN: 9781846040832
ASIN: 1846040833
Publication Date: February 7, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: unread; spine uncreased, pages tight and clean. Surface mail outside UK
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
 INFORMATIVE, INSPIRING, INDISPENSIBLE April 20, 2008
I cannot praise Fighting the Banana Wars and Other Fairtrade Battles too highly. As a Human Rights, Fairtrade and Trade Justice campaigner, it does all the right things for me:
It uses stories of individuals and families to illustrate the big picture of the global trading scene superbly. These stories are well very chosen, and wonderfully told. Harriet's warmth and affection for the people about whom she is writing comes across so powerfully.
It places Fairtrade within the broad context of Trade Justice, which for me is essential. Arguably if the world's trading systems were fair there would be no need for Fairtrade.
It does all this with a powerful conviction and a forceful passion - a passionate anger at the manifold injustices of global trading systems that so savagely damage the lives and livelihoods of tens of millions of farmers and other producers worldwide, and a passionate commitment to do something practical about it.
It is an informative, inspiring and indispensable book.
Buy it now!
Joe Human
 Too much pathos not enough logos April 19, 2008
1 out of 4 found this review helpful
Like many conscientiousness consumers, I buy Fairtrade. I was very excited about this book and had clear objectives approaching it:
1. I wanted to understand the Fairtrade operation better.
2. I wanted to have confidence that this organisation was working efficiently.
In 2006, Fairtrade-certified sales amounted to approximately 1.6 billion worldwide. It's is a large operation, which means a detailed explanation of its organisation structure is required, so that one can know it operates with efficiency and ethical authenticity. Unfortunately, this is where I think the book comes up short. For example, it doesn't really go into detail of the constituent parts of Fairtrade and how they interact.
The Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International split up into FLO international and FLO-CERT in 2004. Are the current arrangements working better? How well are Fairtrade controlling the bureaucracy and accountability battles that beset any large NGO?
Instead of tackling these questions systematically, the author offers anecdotes of wonder tales of people in the organisation, moving narratives of exploited workers and against the odds chronicles of Fairtrade cracking some of the big markets. It's an approach of pathos with little logos. I wanted a clear picture of how this organisation works in my head. I couldn't get it and the annoying pattern of back slapping of various heroes in the Fairtrade organisation became increasingly annoying. While I highly respect anybody who does something for humanity, some of the information she is giving is completely irrelevant and superficial. Some examples:
1. Paul Rice chief executive of transfair USA, looks a bit like Tom Cruise.
2. Barry the director at the world development movement used to have a "lovely ponytail".
3. Tamara Thomas, a women who wanted a company to use Fairtrade cotton, is an attractive blonde.
Does it matter what any of these people look like? While these people may have done great things or played a crucial role, when an organisation becomes a certain size, you can't just rely on super heros; there has to be the processes, checks and tests to make sure the operation is working efficiently from the bottom to the top.
While I respect Harriet Lamb is not a philosopher, I feel there are some very interesting philosophical questions pertaining to fairtrade and ethical shopping that could have been explored.
For example:
1. How does one determine a fair price? What is fair? Is there always an inescapably subjective element to it?
2. The question of whether to buy local produce and hence lowering transport costs and CO2 emissions versus buying African produce thus helping poorer farmers is discussed but only skimmed over and given a sort of trust your instinct answer.
Ultimately, when assesing this book it comes down to whether I achieve my objectives better by reading this book or by researching Fairtrade articles in quality newspapers and publications. For me, it's a case of a latter. How you enjoy it will depend on your objectives.
Because this book deals with a very emotive issue I fear my criticism of this book will not be well received. I'll still be buying and supporting Fairtrade but I must be honest as it is the book I am reviewing not the organisation.
Read YOUR story now! April 10, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
It is fantastic that the campaigners are enjoying Harriet's book so much and like me just cannot put it down.
I know that many, if not all of them understand the power of stories and that is what makes this book so special to me.
It is the power of so many stories from so many different people (producers, licensees, NGOs, consumers etc) all coming together to show what can be achieved when we all start to care about the `problem' and take what action is required by each of us.
I consider it an enormous privilege to be one of those stories and many people that I know are also mentioned by name in the book, but of most importance is the wording in the final paragraph under the 'Acknowledgements' section:
"Above all else, I would like to acknowledge those many, many people across the world who have played their part in putting Fairtrade on the map but whose stories could not all be included in this book"
That of course means all of us who have done anything to support Fairtrade, even if it is just drinking a cup of Fairtrade coffee, so if you have not done so already go out and read YOUR story now!
As well as an excellent read this book is a must have campaigner tool. I just cannot stop reading out aloud from it at every opportunity as it provides the heart and soul that lies beneath all that I do.
Bruce Crowther
Oxfam Campaigner & Fairtrade Towns Coordinator
Inspiring, Informative and Insightful! March 25, 2008
This is a brilliant book, it will make you cry, it will make you laugh and most of all, it will inspire you to change the way you shop! It will connect you with the people who grow and produce the food and clothes that you buy.
I cried at the description of the horrific effects that the (banned in Europe but not in the Third world) chemicals have on the farmers and their families.
I laughed at the breath-taking honesty and self-effacing way that the road from 'crap chocolate wrapped in cardboard' (to quote Tony Robinson) to over 3,000 products (including major supermarket own brands) is described. The book also gives the credit to the everyday people who have campaigned and bought Fairtrade, as they have created the unstoppable flood which has led to a fairer way to trading with developing countries.
I was inspired by the way that the book illustrates how Fairtrade provides stability to the farmers, and also gives them new power and hope. They decide whether to use the Fairtrade premium to build a school or wells or to provide healthcare. It gives them back their pride and voice - as one banana worker puts it - 'the banana worker is the poorest person in our society, managed and exploited by multinational corporations... I was someone that took a box and loaded it onto a train...In this new system I have become an international businessman'.
Harriet is a social campaigner who is definitely one of the ordinary people - and the passion and pragmatism shines through this book.
She doesn't shy away from the difficult questions - how to avoid tokenism by big companies, other ethical areas (the sweatshops, mining and diamonds), where does ensuring a fair price for UK farmers from supermarkets fit in, etc. In fact, the book tackles these areas with balanced, intelligent answers.
The book shows how far things have come, but also spurs you on as we still have far to go - for example, less than 1% of chocolate sold in the UK is Fairtrade (and no major confectioner yet has a Fairtrade product).
I have already pledged to change the way I shop - I dare you to read this book and not to take up at least one of the steps that are outlined at the end.
Fairtrade is a force for change March 17, 2008
Harriet Lamb's account of the beginnings and growth of Fairtrade achieves an excellent balance between clearly explaining the knotty economic and political issues involved, and taking the reader on a journey around the world to where Fairtrade is having a tangible impact. An inspiring read and great resource for anyone wanting to find out more about the real facts and figures behind Fairtrade.
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