Eleanor Harrison, CEO of the Fairtrade Foundation, on Ethical Trade, Climate Action and Building Resilient Supply Chains

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Eleanor Harrison, CEO of the Fairtrade Foundation, explores how ethical trade can reshape global supply chains and build climate resilience.

In this episode, she explains what it really means when a product carries the Fairtrade mark — from minimum pricing protections to the Fairtrade Premium — and how this impacts over 2 million farmers and workers worldwide.

She also discusses the challenges of maintaining equitable trade amid geopolitical instability and climate change, and shares how Fairtrade is pushing for sector-wide reform, especially in commodities like tea, coffee, and cocoa.

Learn how consumer choice, corporate collaboration, and bold data strategies can collectively drive meaningful change.

In-Depth Notes

In this engaging and insightful episode, Eleanor Harrison, CEO of the Fairtrade Foundation, offers a wide-ranging analysis of ethical trade and its evolving role in the global economy.

At the heart of her remarks lies a steadfast belief in fairness and dignity for the millions of farmers and workers whose labor underpins everyday commodities such as bananas, tea, cocoa, and coffee. Harrison outlines the core pillars of Fairtrade’s mission: the assurance of minimum pricing to safeguard against volatile markets, and the Fairtrade Premium, which provides cooperatives with additional funds for community development.

Harrison describes Fairtrade’s extensive global footprint—spanning 68 countries and more than two million producers—as both a source of pride and a foundation for structural reform. Uniquely, the organization’s governance is equally shared between national offices and producer networks, with 50 percent representation from farmers and workers themselves. This participatory model is crucial in building more resilient and democratic supply chains.

Despite Fairtrade’s mainstream visibility—evident in its 84 percent brand recognition in the UK and similar levels across much of Europe—Harrison is forthright about the persistent challenges it faces. Climate change, geopolitical instability, exploitative pricing structures, and declining commodity values continue to threaten the livelihoods of smallholders. She underscores the urgency of consumer behavior, noting that while awareness is high, active purchasing of Fairtrade products remains disproportionately low. Encouraging consumers to be intentional—to “do it fair”—is not merely a marketing imperative, but a moral one.

The episode also delves into the intricacies of Fairtrade’s economic architecture, including the use of independently verified certification through FLOCERT and the formulation of Living Income Reference Prices. These tools aim to recalibrate the global trading system and offer a degree of economic security often denied to producers. Harrison discusses how big data, when used ethically, can help drive this transformation—ensuring insights flow not only to retailers and brands but also to the farmers at the beginning of the supply chain.

Moreover, she emphasizes Fairtrade’s collaborative ethos. Whether partnering with businesses like Marks & Spencer on climate resilience, or aligning with NGOs and governments to push for human rights and environmental due diligence legislation, the Foundation is increasingly operating as a convener of systems-level change. One notable campaign, “Brew It Fair,” seeks to revitalize the tea industry, which Harrison reveals is plagued by undervaluation, underpayment, and declining yields. Despite efforts, just 10 percent of tea consumed in the UK is Fairtrade—a figure she’s determined to increase.

Harrison’s leadership reflects a clear strategic direction: scaling impact, deepening partnerships, and transforming a movement that began as a grassroots effort into a driver of systemic change.

About Eleanor Harrison OBE

Eleanor Harrison OBE joined the Fairtrade Foundation as its Chief Executive Officer in March 2025.

Eleanor is a visionary changemaker and strategist who brings with her 20 years of experience leading purpose-driven organisations. Eleanor is committed to increasing demand for Fairtrade products, supporting their portfolio of committed and highly valued business partners and growing their impact for producers.

For the last four years Eleanor was Chief Executive of Impetus, an impact investor that scales evidence-based interventions to support young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to achieve better education and employment outcomes.

Previously, in addition to being the Interim Chief Executive at Safe Passage International, a non-profit using strategic advocacy and litigation to open and defend safe, legal routes to sanctuary for people seeking asylum, Eleanor spent six years as Chief Executive of GlobalGiving UK; an award-winning global nonprofit challenging traditional aid dynamics; using technology to enable better access to funding, skills and learning for local organisations everywhere.

Prior to this Eleanor ran an NGO in Kenya for five years helping children and their families build better lives for themselves and led innovative programmes for refugees and young people in the UK. Eleanor was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours (2016) in the UK in recognition of her services to International Development.