Biological diversity: The variability among living organisms from all sources and the ecological complexes of which they are a part; this
includes diversity within species, between species of ecosystems

Chemical pesticides: a chemical substance used in crop production to maintain soil fertility or for pest /weed control.

Child: Any person less than 15 years of age, unless local minimum age law stipulates a higher age for work or mandatory schooling, in
which case the stipulated higher ages would apply. Exceptions for developing countries may apply according to ILO Convention 138.

Child labour: Any work performed by a child younger than the age(s) specified in the above definition of a child.

Collective bargaining agreement: A contract for labour negotiated between an employer or group of employers and one or more
worker organizations, which specifies the terms and conditions of employment.

Company: An organization or business entity responsible for implementing the requirements of this standard, including personnel employed by the company.

Contracting operator: An entity (trader, manufacturer) that facilitate the collection, processing and/or export of crop products by contracting farmers, acting as a group operator organizing and managing the internal system.

Discrimination: Any distinction, exclusion or preference based on race, colour, gender, religion, political opinion, nationality or social origin that causes equality of opportunity or treatment in employment or work to be lifted or reduced (definition from ILO).

Ecosystem: A set or system of plants, animals and their physical environments, functioning together as a interdependent unit

Endangered species: Any species which is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its rate

Fair trade price: Fair base sales price for the fair trade certified product as negotiated between the fair trade producer company and the fair trade buyer, which includes a differential for standard compliance and certification.

Forced and compulsory labour: All work or service that a person has not offered to do voluntarily and is made to do under the threat of punishment or retaliation, or is demanded as a means of repayment of debt.

Internal Control System (ICS): A documented quality assurance and quality management system that allows an external certification body to delegate the annual inspection of individual group of members to an identified unit within the certified producer grou and which manages compliance with a standard by taking over some of the farmers quality management responsibilities.

Local legislation: includes all legal norms given by governmental entities.

Native species: A species that occurs naturally in the region

NGO: civil society organizations; such as women organizations, community organizations, development organizations and others
from public and private sectors.

Personnel: All individuals, men or women directly employed or contracted by a company.

Producer (farmer): Farming enterprise that cultivate and grow
different crops for the purpose of harvesting and selling.

Principle: Norms, rules or values that represent what is desirable and
positive for a person, group or organization or community and help
it determining the rightfulness or wrongfulness of its actions.

Processor: One that processes.

Producer Organization: Group of producers organized in a formal
kind of farmers association or cooperative.

Organic: An integrated system of farming based on ecological principles, that replenishes and refresh long-term soil fertility by
optimizing conditions for biological activity within the soil, rather than through the application of agrochemicals.

Regular: once a year, at least.

Renewable sources of energy: Any resource that provides energy and is capable of indefinite renewal on a human-based time scale

Small Farmer: Producer with less than 20 Ha of crop field.

Supplier: An organization which provides the company with goods and/or services integral to and utilized in or for the production of the
company’s goods and/or services

Weighted toxicity index score: is calculated by taking the total volume of each agrochemical (pesticide, fungicide, herbicide or
synthetic fertilizer) applied over the year and multiplying it by a toxicity factor (LD50) for the main active ingredient in the product in
question. Then by averaging the individual value product values and then dividing them by the total productive area of the farm,
we get an overall index score for the farm.

Worker: personnel working in crop production and processing who can be working full time, part time and seasonal time. The term
workers shall also include others such as administrative personnel within the company.

Young worker: Any worker over the age of a child, as defined above, and under the age of 18 (according to ILO)