How Fairtrade is shaping a sustainable future
The Fairtrade Foundation has been around for almost 30 years now, and the work they’ve done is invaluable. From protecting farmers’ and workers’ rights to supporting the growth of farming companies, fairtrade does a lot to keep the agriculture community fair.
In this spotlight, we’re going to explore the work that the Fairtrade Foundation does for us, as well as covering the different ways that you can help them help our planet.
How Fairtrade helps
The one thing just as important as sustainable food is a sustainable worker. Without these farmers and workers, we wouldn’t be able to enjoy everything that we have today.
Fairtrade supports over 1.7 million farmers and workers in 25 developing countries. The foundation ensures that any conditions for the workers are safe and comfortable. They also make sure that anyone under the protection of the Fairtrade Foundation is paid fairly by requiring companies to always pay at market price. This aids in local sustainability, making it possible for companies to grow their business and make a fair living by trading.
The Fairtrade market is so successful, that in 2012, sales in the UK were up to £1.57 billion. That’s a lot of money for developing countries.
Beyond a sustainable community, supporting Fairtrade also supports the environment. The Fairtrade Standards also cover environmental protection, meaning that energy and greenhouse gas emission reduction is affected, as is soil and water quality, pest management, biodiversity protection, prohibition of genetically modified organisms and finally harmful chemicals and waste management. This hugely supports our environment, helping reduce the negative impacts that many agricultural companies would often cause. This also means that any fairtrade food or drink product you purchase won’t have any harmful chemicals in them, which can sometimes have an effect on our wellbeing.
How you can help
There’s a number of ways you can support the Fairtrade Foundation and the lives of Fairtrade workers. The easiest of which is to simply shop Fairtrade.
Fairtrade products can often be a little pricier than you’re used to, but this is to help support the organisation as well as the farmers and workers. A lot of the time, the excellent taste and quality of any products is enough to make up for the extra pound!
To shop Fairtrade, just keep an eye out for the Fairtrade mark on any eligible product, such as chocolate or bananas. A full list of products can be found here, so make sure you check out what to look for!
Fairtrade is a non-profit organisation, so you can also think about supporting them through direct donations. This can help educate children as well as support farmers and Fairtrade companies.
The foundation also offers volunteering jobs and campaigns where you can help put the demand on for fair work in the agriculture industry! If you’re the headteacher of a school or youth group, you might even consider hosting an assembly or class to raise awareness for the organisation.
Check out the Fairtrade Foundation website for a full list of ways that can help you get involved
If you’re interested in learning more about sustainable food, check out our blog on an introduction to sustainable food. There, you’ll find all sorts of different tips on how you can help save our planet and its people with reliable food.
Or, if you want to know more about the world of food tech in general, we also have a handful of blogs exploring the world of food delivery.
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