By Peter Budig

The Fair Toys Organisation (FTO) has a clear aim: it advocates for fair toy production and wants to credibly verify compliance by companies with environmental and social criteria covering the treatment of workers (job security, right to union representation, fair minimum wage, no child labour, etc.) and ecological standards. FTO, established in Nuremberg in 2020, has developed a verification scheme based on these requirements. On Thursday, 28 September 2023, it awarded the Fair Toys Seal for the first time. For the two toy manufacturers that received the seal, this distinction certifies their efforts towards fairness and demonstrates to customers that they can purchase products from these producers with a clear conscience.

Complex verification process

Nuremberg is the toy city. It is home to the industry’s largest trade fair, most important museum for toys and, since recently, the Fair Toys Organisation. The latter refers to itself as a multi-stakeholder initiative – simply put, it is made up of members from the toy industry, toy manufacturers and (organised) civil society. “Other industries have long since committed themselves to fair production conditions”, said FTO Board Member Helga Riedl, referencing the Fair Wear seal for textiles as an example. Developing a dedicated verification scheme with a seal for the toy sector was no easy undertaking, however. Credibility was a major factor, which could only be provided by an independent verification organisation. But supply chains are long and complicated in the toy industry. Goods are produced all over the world. This does not make it easy to conduct the verifications needed to award a seal.

Heunec and plasticant mobilo passed the Fair Performance Check

First to complete the process was Heunec from Neustadt in the vicinity of Coburg. It sells two million soft toys annually – ranging in size from keyrings to three-metre high presentation bears. Thirty-nine employees work at the headquarters, where some production facilities are located. However, “most Heunec soft toys come from China”, acknowledges CEO Barbara Fehn-Dransfeld. It is not easy to monitor production when soft toys, plastic eyes and stuffing material are manufactured on a worldwide basis. Ms Fehn-Dransfeld, as the first recipient of the seal, was accompanied by her daughter Josephine, who is acting as a managing director in the company. Heunec underwent the entire verification process, which included a detailed questionnaire, an action plan based on the responses, training and consulting, and a final on-site Fair Performance Check. Now that the necessary score has been achieved in the assessment system, the soft toys are permitted to bear the seal that will soon adorn all products sold by retailers. The second recipient of the seal, Sven Grabosch from plasticant mobilo based in Sulzburg in Baden-Württemberg, also successfully participated in the process.

Start-up funding provided by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)

Expert staff were needed in the first place to ensure the credibility and traceability of the verification scheme. FTO received funding for its offices and two full-time positions, divided up between four employees, through pre-financing provided by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. In the long term, however, FTO plans to cover its costs through membership dues. The annual membership fee for civil society members – which include the cities of Nuremberg and Fürth, the Christliche Initiative Romero, the Institute for Ludology, Mission EineWelt, the Nuremberg Human Rights Centre and others – varies according to the size of the organisation. The same applies to supporting members, such as the Nuremberg Toy Museum, Spielwarenmesse eG and private individuals. For manufacturers, the membership fee is based on toy sales (for example: up to 1 million: €1000, … up to 50 million: €9000, … 500+ million: €15,000). Manufacturing members include at the moment Alea Artis, alldoro, Community Playthings, the German Association of the Toy Industry (DVSI), Faller, fischertechnik, Franckh-Kosmos Verlag, Haba, Heunec, livipur, Mawi, NOCH, plasticant mobilo, sigikid, Spiel ein Spiel, Spielwaren Krömer, Tiny Hazel and Zapf Creation. Further rules apply to toy retailers, toy associations, unions, public bodies and others.

Benefits for manufacturers, customers and human rights all over the world

While manufacturers benefit from fair production and retail processes, there are also very specific advantages for customers and society. “Consumers have the peace of mind of knowing that products from these companies meet Fair Toys Organisation standards and that labour rights and human rights are respected during manufacturing”, said Board Member Maik Pflaum. Given that toys are frequently produced in low-wage countries, the quality seal has an international impact. According to Pflaum, “with its strict standards, this seal helps to provide a credible assessment of where labour rights have been protected or not.”

Recognising companies that take responsibility

Prof. Harald Bolsinger from the Faculty of Ethics and Sustainability at the Technical University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt is an FTO Board Member. With his expertise in scientific oversight, he can vouch for the fact that “this organisation is focused on long-term work. This means everyone can learn how to make continuous improvements. It is a goodwill organisation”, he emphasised. The final appraisal came from Maik Pflaum: “The seal cannot perform miracles or offer absolute perfection. However, it demonstrates a commitment to responsibility and that a company respects human rights obligations.”

About the author

Peter Budig studied Protestant theology, history and political science. He worked as a freelance journalist, headed up the editorial department of a large advertising paper in Nuremberg for ten years and was the editor of Nuremberg’s Abendzeitung newspaper. He has been freelancing again since 2014 as a journalist, book author and copywriter. Storytelling is absolutely his favourite form.