On the occasion of its annual General Assembly, Fairtrade International, an independent nonprofit org representing farmers and workers worldwide, including cocoa, released its 2025 Annual Report highlighting its progress in advancing fairer trade and strengthening producer resilience while also preparing a new strategy for the future.  

Despite a complex global environment shaped by geopolitical instability, volatile markets, and climate pressures, the annual report entitled “Fairness First” highlights many significant Fairtrade achievements. According to the org, a comprehensive review of 122 studies showed Fairtrade positively benefitted producers across key areas including economic security, climate resilience, and opportunities for women.

The annual report also shined a spotlight on the growing business commitment to living incomes for farmers. In fact, 15 commercial partners are paying Living Income Reference Prices for cocoa, which means they are enabling a typical farmer household to earn enough to afford a decent standard of living.

“Fairness is not only an ethical imperative; it is essential for building resilient supply chains and sustainable businesses,” says Marike Runneboom de Peña, Global CEO of Fairtrade International. “This report highlights the progress we have made together with farmers and workers, companies, and partners worldwide, while our new strategy sets a clear direction for scaling impact and supporting farming communities through increasingly complex global challenges.”

The year 2025 also marked the end of 2021–2025 strategy. According to the last five years of data, Fairtrade producer organizations earned more than $1.2 billion USD in Fairtrade Premium, an extra sum of money paid on top of the selling price, enabling farmers and workers to invest in priorities such as education, healthcare, productivity, infrastructure, and climate adaptation.

Across the strategy period, Fairtrade established 12 new strategic partnerships and secured €59 million in fundraising that supported 111 producer projects focused on climate resilience, women’s empowerment, youth opportunities, and workers’ rights.

Strategic pillar highlights

Shifting the balance of power to farmers and workers

 In 2025 alone, 16 Living Income Reference Prices were published, reviewed, or updated. Fairtrade now has a total of 30 Living Income Reference Prices covering nine products across 22 countries.

More than half a million farm plots belonging to certified organizations were mapped in preparation for the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).

Growth and innovation

In 2025, Fairtrade launched a major evolution of its Standards to make it more effective and at the same time still practical to implement and firmly grounded in Fairtrade’s core principles and values, the association says.

Fairtrade also continued expanding markets in producer regions. In Latin America, 29 producer organizations are now directly selling Fairtrade-labelled products within their own regions. In Brazil, the number of Fairtrade licensees increased to 40 by the end of 2025.

Advocacy and citizen engagement

Thanks to its advocacy efforts across 2024 and 2025, Fairtrade influenced 30 legislative changes, it says, and continued its engagement on EU legislation, including the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and the EU Organic Regulation (EUOR).

Consumer trust in the Fairtrade label also remained strong. According to 2025 GlobeScan research, three out of four shoppers recognize the Fairtrade label and 83% of those consumers trust it.

Digitalization for fairer supply chains

Fairtrade continued strengthening digital transparency and traceability tools across supply chains, it notes.

In 2025, Fairtrade launched its revamped Impact Platform that includes data dashboards for Fairtrade’s seven key products, information on projects worldwide, and more than 50 commissioned impact studies.

Preparing for the future

Looking forward, the annual report also outlined Fairtrade’s Global Strategy 2026–2028 that is focused on strengthening farmer resilience and advancing fairer, more sustainable trade systems.

Key priorities include developing a global sustainability program for bananas, cocoa, and coffee; carrying out a major evolution of its Standards to make them fit for the future; launching new digital tools to support geolocation data management and EUDR readiness in coffee and cocoa supply chains; and strengthening traceability systems to support compliance, quality assurance, and trust.

As Fairtrade keeps evolving alongside regulatory requirements to better support companies, it also continues to grow markets and producer impact through innovative sourcing models and collaborative commercial engagement.

To read the annual report and learn more about Fairtrade International, click here. 

Related: Fairtrade announces new living income prices for cocoa