Garden and Green

Members of the public can enjoy a fairground with a difference at the launch of Fairtrade Fortnight 2008. The two-week annual campaign (25 Feb – 9 March) celebrating products carrying the FAIRTRADE Mark kicks off with an action-packed event on London’s South Bank on Sunday 24th February 2008 (11am – 4pm).

A Fairtrade tea cup ride, a towering Helter Skelter, a Fairtrade coconut shy, candyfloss made with Fairtrade sugar and a Fairtrade fortune teller are just some of the games and activities that will be bringing all the fun of the fair to the South Bank. Organised by the Fairtrade Foundation and backed by organisations, charities and businesses that support or sell Fairtrade products, the day will give visitors the opportunity to sample some of the 3,000 Fairtrade items now certified and to learn more about Trade Justice. A series of talks by Fairtrade producers from countries around the world will give visitors a chance to meet the farmers and workers behind the products, and learn first-hand the difference that Fairtrade is making to their communities.

Fairtrade Foundation Executive Director Harriet Lamb said: “We hope that people roll up to join in the fairground fun, and learn about the serious message behind Fairtrade as well.

“Millions of farmers and workers are walking the delicate tightrope of international trade. When market prices wobble they risk falling into devastating poverty. Fairtrade offers them stability, so they have the confidence to look ahead and move towards a better future.”

All aboard!

Visitors will quite literally have the chance to jump aboard the Fairtrade movement at the event where the new Choose Fairtrade Bus will be launched. The specially adapted open-top campaign bus will set off from London on a grand tour of eight Fairtrade Towns and cities across the UK during the Fortnight, spreading the word about Fairtrade and calling on local people to Change Today, Choose Fairtrade - the theme of Fairtrade Fortnight 2008.

The Choose Fairtrade Bus will travel to Ipswich, Leeds, Sunderland, Glasgow, Liverpool, Birmingham, Cardiff, and Bristol. The bus will be the focus of interactive displays and activities, live music, discussions, competitions, and the opportunity to sample delicious Fairtrade products and meet Fairtrade producers. The bus experience will inform ‘passengers’ about Fairtrade, inspiring them to choose Fairtrade products in their daily shopping and give a better deal to disadvantaged producers.

Harriet Lamb continues: “Fairtrade is already making a big difference to the lives of more than seven million people in the developing world, but there are millions more we’d like to reach. 2007 was a phenomenal year of growth forFairtrade bananas, for example, with one in every five bananas bought from supermarkets now Fairtrade certified. On the other hand, this means four in five bananas still aren’t Fairtrade, and we’re determined to change those odds.

“With the Choose Fairtrade Bus we aim to drive change across the UK and we need as many people as possible to jump onboard!”

Local Fairtrade campaign groups in each location will be hosting high-profile events to complement the onboard activities. The tour is a new addition to Fairtrade Fortnight, the Fairtrade Foundation’s annual campaign which brings together producers, campaigners, retailers, licensees and NGOs in a nationwide effort to promote products arrying the FAIRTRADE Mark. Last year an estimated 10,000 separate activities and events took place during Fortnight, with everything from Fairtrade parades, concerts and debates to tea dances, fiestas, fashion shows and family days.

The annual Fairtrade Fortnight campaign is promoted by networks around the country including charities, trade unions, student groups, churches and other faith-based organisations. There are now more than 300 Fairtrade Towns and Cities across the UK, as well as 60 Fairtrade Universities reaching out to students, nearly 4,000 Fairtrade Churches and 35 Fairtrade Synagogues.

The FAIRTRADE Mark is the only independent consumer label that ensures farmers in developing countries receive an agreed and stable price for the crops they grow that covers the cost of sustainable production, as well as additional income for farmers and workers to invest in the future. Retail sales of Fairtrade certified products topped £290 million in 2006 and have grown 40% year-on-year over the past five years. Awareness levels of the FAIRTRADE Mark among the UK population reached their highest level last year at 57% (TNS Omnimas).

View Fairtrade Foundation website here