the fair trade foundation: RONAP, a Brazilian nut co-operative
“Life has changed since the co-operative started and we began selling to Fairtrade… the premium helps us a lot with the costs families face and improves the lives of all our members in some way. It means that children who weren’t able to study before because of costs can now go to school and get the education they need to make progress in life. I’m positive about the future. Things are improving for us because we’re learning about production and costs; we’re working with other co-operatives, which strengthens our values and self-esteem. All of this means we’re now in the position to strengthen our organisation.” Elvira Camilla Yatto Deviscara, Secretary, RONAP
The Amazon Rainforest has long been plagued with deforestation and exploitation of its valuable and not-so-renewable resources. The RONAP cooperative in Peru aims to help local communities to strengthen their economic outlook and to preserve the valuable resources within the rainforest.
RONAP is a Spanish acronym for "Organisation of Organic Brazil Nut Gatherers of Peru". It was founded by 42 nut gatherers in April 2003 and formally registered as a co-operative in February 2004. Before they formed RONAP, nut gatherers worked individually and sold their nuts for whatever price they could get. In 2006, around 65% of a family's income in the area came from the co-op.
The families gather nut pods that have fallen to the forest floor during the rainy season. This process saves the trees and surrounding environment from any undue damage. This not only protects many families' livelihood, but also the rainforest itself.
The Amazon Rainforest has long been plagued with deforestation and exploitation of its valuable and not-so-renewable resources. The RONAP cooperative in Peru aims to help local communities to strengthen their economic outlook and to preserve the valuable resources within the rainforest.
RONAP is a Spanish acronym for "Organisation of Organic Brazil Nut Gatherers of Peru". It was founded by 42 nut gatherers in April 2003 and formally registered as a co-operative in February 2004. Before they formed RONAP, nut gatherers worked individually and sold their nuts for whatever price they could get. In 2006, around 65% of a family's income in the area came from the co-op.
The families gather nut pods that have fallen to the forest floor during the rainy season. This process saves the trees and surrounding environment from any undue damage. This not only protects many families' livelihood, but also the rainforest itself.
The minimum Fairtrade price for organic brazil nuts is $1.92/lb plus an additional Fairtrade premium of $0.17/lb for the members to spend on agreed business development programmes or community projects. The higher, stable Fairtrade price means a better standard of living for members and has enabled them to repair or improve their houses. The premium fund has been used to help families with their social expenses. Some children weren’t able to study because their families couldn’t afford school fees and other costs. Now the premium fund is used to help families with these costs so that their children can attend school and get the education they need to progress in life.
The RONAP co-op follows the following fair trade principles:
Check out RONAP, by going to this link: http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/producers/cosmetics/ronap_brazil_nut_cooperative_peru.aspx
The RONAP co-op follows the following fair trade principles:
- Fair Working Conditions: Provides an acceptable working condition to the workers in the co-op.
- Fair Prices: The co-op charges a fair price in order to provide a sufficient income to the workers in Peru.
- Integration Into the Local Economy and Regional Development: 65% of families in the local area earn a living through the co-op.
- Fair Trade Partnerships Between All Actors in Tourism: The organization only trades with partners within their approved network.
- Sustainable Resource Use and Environmental Justice: The nut pods are harvested by picking them up off the forest floor. This provides minimal impact on the trees and the forest, because the workers do not have to cut down anything.
Check out RONAP, by going to this link: http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/producers/cosmetics/ronap_brazil_nut_cooperative_peru.aspx