Alter Eco is a France-based alternative trading organization

Alternative trading organization

An alternative trading organization is usually a non-governmental organization or mission-driven business aligned with the Fair trade movement, aiming "to contribute to the alleviation of poverty in developing regions of the world by establishing a system of trade that allows marginalized...

, founded in 1998 by Tristan Lecomte, which specializes in the import and distribution of Fairtrade products.

The organization is well-known in the Fair Trade

Fair trade

Fair trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach that aims to help producers in developing countries make better trading conditions and promote sustainability. The movement advocates the payment of a higher price to producers as well as higher social and environmental standards...

 movement for its unique marketing

Marketing

Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...

, branding approach, and extensive product range: it is widely considered as one of the strongest Fair Trade brands on the market. Alter Eco products are offered in several French mass retailers such as Monoprix

Monoprix

Monoprix S.A. is a major French supermarket chain with its headquarters in Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine, France, near Paris.It is a joint subsidiary of the Casino Group and Groupe Galeries Lafayette, with both partners holding 50% of the company each since 2000. The Monoprix group had more than 300...

, Cora

Cora (hypermarket)

Cora is a retail group based in Belgium which owns several supermarket and hypermarket chains internationally. Formed in 1974, the corporation's brands include Match, Profi, Truffaut, Ecomax, Animalis, Sovena and Houra, as well as Cora-branded hypermarkets....

, Match

Match (supermarket)

Match retail chain, situated in Hungary, is part of the Louis Delhaize Group, open in several European countries along with the Antilles and Guyana. Match supermarkets offers a large range of different food products in Hungary...

, Système U

Système U

Système U is a French retailers' cooperative, comprising about eight hundred independent hypermarkets, and supermarkets, headquartered in the Parc Tertiaire SILIC in Rungis, France....

, E.Leclerc

E.Leclerc

E.Leclerc is a French hypermarket chain, headquartered in Ivry-sur-Seine. The chain enables semi-independent stores to operate under the Leclerc brand.E.Leclerc was established on 1st January 1948....

 and Carrefour

Carrefour

Carrefour S.A. is an international hypermarket chain headquartered in Levallois-Perret, France. It is one of the largest hypermarket chains in the world...

. , there are over 100 Alter Eco Fair Trade products on the market, sourced from 42 cooperatives in 37 countries. Alter Eco Fair Trade products include coffee, tea, rice, sugar, quinoa, chocolate, olive oil, juice, cotton balls, and many more.

In 2005, Alter Eco offered its products for the first time in the United States and Australia. In 2006, the organization approached Brazilian retailers to sell Brazilian products in the country under Fair Trade terms, thus creating the first South-South Fair Trade experiment.

In the US market, Alter Eco has rapidly expanded its availability to consumers, and can be found in every major area across the country. Alter Eco products available in the US include coffee, tea, rice, quinoa, sugar, chocolate, and most recently hearts of palm.

In Europe, all Alter Eco products are FLO-CERT certified and bear the International Fairtrade Certification Mark

International Fairtrade Certification Mark

The International FAIRTRADE Certification Mark is an independent certification mark used in over 50 countries. It appears on products as an independent guarantee that disadvantaged producers in the developing world are getting a better deal....

. In the United States, products bear the "Fair Trade Certified" mark of TransFair USA

Transfair USA

Fair Trade USA, formerly "TransFair USA" is a 501 non-profit organization.Founded in 1998, Fair Trade USA’s mission is to "enable sustainable development and community empowerment by cultivating a more equitable global trade model that benefits farmers, workers, consumers, industry and the earth"...

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