Fairtrade

The Fairtrade City campaign relies on involvement across the community. Whether you are a shop or café owner or a shopper with a conscience, there are a number of ways in which you can support Fairtrade in Southampton.

• Ask your local shops and cafes to stock and serve Fairtrade food and drinks. They may not be aware of the demand for fairly traded goods.

• Invite your friends and family to taste food and beverages with the Fairtrade Mark. Make sure you have plenty in stock for your next celebration!

• Ask for Fairtrade food and drink to be served in your work or study place, and buy Fairtrade tea or coffee for meetings that you organise or attend. At school, get pupils talking about Fairtrade.

• Choose a fairly traded garment or craft item for the next gift that you buy.

• Become a Fairtrade university, school or church. More information on how to achieve this can be found on the Fairtrade Foundation website.
  

• Support from the City Council (a resolution and strategy are now in place).

• A range of Fairtrade goods readily available in local shops, restaurants and cafes.

• Fairtrade products in use by a number of local workplaces and community groups.

• Media coverage and popular support.

• A local Fairtrade working group.

Although Southampton is now officially a Fairtrade City, the campaign continues to work on increasing awareness of fair trade issues and mainstreaming the availability of Fairtrade products.

The Fairtrade Foundation is a registered charity, which exists to ensure a better deal for marginalized and disadvantaged Third World producers. The Foundation awards a consumer label, the Fairtrade Mark, to products that meet internationally recognised standards of fair trade. The criteria for the award of the Fairtrade Mark include,

• Decent wages, adequate housing and health and safety standards for workers in plantations and factories;

• The right to join trade unions or participate in producers' co-operatives;

• 'Social premiums' on top of a fair minimum price, that can be invested in communities and support local social welfare, such as education and health;

• A long term trading commitment;

• Good environmental standards and sustainable production practices;

• No child or forced labour.

The Fairtrade Foundation, with its partners in other countries, checks that products continue to meet these standards after they are approved.

The Fairtrade Towns and Cities Initiative is an exciting nation-wide project to develop support for the Fairtrade Mark. A Fairtrade Town, City, Borough, Village or Zone is a community that has made a commitment to supporting Fairtrade, and through it to support disadvantaged farmers and workers in developing countries. In practical terms, this means the community will have significant levels of awareness of the concept of fair-trade, Fairtrade products will be widely available, and a commitment will have been made to increase their use further still, through promotional and educational activities.

Currently, some sixty towns and cities, including Southampton, have been awarded Fairtrade Town or City status.

To find out more about the Southampton Fair Trade Group please visit the website link on the right hand side of the page. If you would like to participate in events organised by the Southampton Fair Trade Group, or if you sell fair trade goods locally and would like to be included in the fair trade directory, please send an email to the group's secretary admin@fair-trade-southampton.org.uk.