Fairtrade Fortnight

This week I thought I’d take a bit of a break from criticising politics and putting myself on Homeland Security’s watch list to talk about Fairtrade Fortnight. Although, depending on how things go in the Russian presidential elections tomorrow, I may have to write an extra post this week that will catch the Kremlin’s attention.

As its name suggests, Fairtrade Fortnight is a two week event being put on by the charity Fairtrade under the heading of ‘Take a Step for Fairtrade.’ Fairtrade is attempting to convince more people to take just one step towards buying fairly traded products, even if that step is as simple as buying a different brand of tea.

Fairtrade, for those who don’t know it, is a charity that seeks to encourage fair trade in numerous products from tea leaves to cocoa beans. People don’t tend to think about where this stuff comes from, or at least when they do they don’t think about it in any meaningful sense. Provided it is there when we need it we don’t really think about where it comes from do we? I know I’m as guilty of that as anyone.

But the truth is there are people behind it all. Hard working people whose entire livelihoods are centred around our desire and need for tea, coffee, or chocolate. But nine times out of ten these people are not getting a fair price for their goods. They either do not have the education and skills to be able to stop themselves from getting conned, or they are working for some massive conglomerate. They find themselves working themselves to the bone in exchange for the bare minimum. Quite often they have to go without such basics as healthcare or education.

Now I know some people are of the opinion that income equality is a bad thing. “Oh no,” they cry, “If we all earn the same how will we reward achievement?” – to which I always think, surely achievement is its own reward. And some particularly small minded and ignorant idiots always bring up the USSR for some reason. Now maybe income equality is unachievable, but I think you have to agree that if someone is getting paid sixteen pence an hour to harvest tea leaves and can’t afford to educate their children then something stinks.

This is where Fairtrade steps in, liaising either with the companies or with the farmers themselves in an effort to secure them a fair price for their goods thus securing them a better quality of life. While this does translate to slightly more expensive goods at our end, I’m sure you’ll agree it’s probably worth it.

I’m not asking you to go and replace everything in your cupboards with fairly traded goods. But maybe in the spirit of Fairtrade Fortnight, you could change one thing, such as your brand of teabags. Or replace that chocolate bar with a fairly traded one. It won’t cost you much more, but will help out other people a whole, whole lot.

If you know that by making this small change, those who are helping to make your food are earning a decent wage, won’t that make it taste just a little sweeter?