Irreproachable. In marketing as in law, misrepresentation of merchandise is a sanctionable offence. Any product or service for sale is in some way the object of a contract which determines and guarantees its attributes or characteristics. Should a major characteristic be found wanting, the contract is null and void! In other words, the value of a product, i.e. the price that the consumer agrees to pay, will depend on their confidence in the supplier providing the anticipated product in exchange for their money. Furthermore if the product is, let’s say, in common consumption, its characteristics must not be prone to change (for the worse) with the seasons, or with the source… or depending on whoever, at some point or other in the chain, was responsible for certifying that the product in question lived up to the promise made to the customers in all respects. In addition, if this promise includes a firm social commitment to a vulnerable social group (e.g. the producers), it is transformed in the eyes of the customers into a pledge or pact! But what does all that have to do with fruits and vegetables? Well, I just gave you a brief rundown of the history of certification; all the different kinds of certification, which claim to demonstrate which produce is organic, fair trade, good, healthy, sustainable, etc. There will be cries of misrepresentation whenever so much as a kilogram does not live up to the initial promise. And the argument that “We were only under a best endeavours obligation, and not a performance obligation” will not hold water. The product must be irreproachable at all times. Since, besides the penal sanction, which is always a possibility, consumer sanctions too could quickly ensue, bringing destruction. This entails firstly a moral risk (or vagary) hanging over the downstream operators who are not concerned with the thoroughness of the certificates and certifiers upstream. Secondly, for the developers of such systems, it entails a major risk of collapse of labels, brands, etc. The right to err is prohibited, since everything is built on the principle of irreproachability, credibility and trust. Generating added value through certification is laudable. Adhering to all its rules of exemplary practice is even better!
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