Entitled ‘Be the Change’, Fairtrade Fortnight will celebrate the impact created by millions of people across the UK for farmers and agricultural workers overseas by choosing Fairtrade chocolate, coffee, tea, bananas, flowers, and more – with around 7 in 10 UK adults (69%) having said they bought a Fairtrade product during the last year.
Thanks to public support and company commitments, £1.7 billion in Fairtrade Premium payments have been generated globally between 1994 and 2022. In 2023, retail sales of Fairtrade products generated around £28 million in Fairtrade Premium payments for producers to invest in business, community and projects of their choice including healthcare, education and environmental initiatives.
Throughout Fairtrade Fortnight, billboards strategically placed outside supermarkets in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, London and Manchester to catch shoppers’ eyes will riff off the research to highlight regional trends and congratulate shoppers for supporting farmers worldwide.
In Edinburgh for example, an amazing 9 in every 10 adults (89%) bought a Fairtrade product. Meanwhile the biggest Fairtrade chocolate fans could be found in Bristol, where 65% of adults have been enjoying Fairtrade chocolate.
Supermarkets and leading brands are putting on an exciting range of offers in stores, including the Co-op offering 10% discount on selected Fairtrade products for their members.
Marie Rumsby, the Fairtrade Foundation’s Director of Advocacy, said: “This Fairtrade Fortnight is extra special as we celebrate 30 years supporting farmers and working for global trade justice. Every Fairtrade purchase makes a difference to farmers’ lives, and we want to remind shoppers that when they next visit a supermarket, they choose products with the Fairtrade logo, as these ensure farmers receive fairer prices for their hard work and can invest in their families and communities.”
“Fairtrade’s Minimum Price, Premium payments and Standards – and the fair prices they guarantee – mean farmers who produce our much-loved products like coffee, tea, bananas and chocolate can afford to put food on the table, send their children to school, cover their farm costs, and adapt to the changing climate.”
“Without the stability a fairer trade system provides – and as farmers tell us climate change is making it harder to grow crops – it is more important now than ever to show solidarity so future generations of farmers will be able to continue farming. But choosing to buy Fairtrade products helps build their resilience to these global challenges and helps keep our favourite products on our supermarket shelves.”
In addition to urging shoppers to ‘Be the Change’ to help reach more farmers who face the challenges posed by an unfair trade system and the impacts of climate change, Fairtrade is also calling on businesses and politicians to play their part.
The UK public support this call, with 60% of UK adults saying politicians should be doing more to ensure farmers and other agricultural workers in low-income countries are paid fairly.
Rumsby continued: “Buying Fairtrade is essential, but shoppers can’t ‘Be the Change’ on their own: we need the support of businesses and government to transform our global trade system so that it supports the millions of farmers and workers who produce our food. This Fortnight, we are calling on the UK public to join us in asking their newly elected MPs to pledge to ‘Be the Change’ to make trade fair, and for the new government to develop a trade policy that genuinely works for people and planet.”
Meanwhile, thousands of grassroots supporters in communities, schools, places of worship and universities are organising hundreds of special events across the country to celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight and 30 years of supporting farmers and workers overseas.
To find out more about Fairtrade Fortnight, visit: www.fairtrade.org.uk/get-involved/current-campaigns/fairtrade-fortnight/
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