Sergi Corbalán, on behalf of the World Fair Trade Organisation (WFTO), Fairtrade Labelling Organisations International (FLO) and the European Fair Trade Association (EFTA)² stated

“We welcome the Committee of the Regions´ support for Fair Trade and a European Strategy and action plan for Fair Trade for Local and Regional Authorities.”

The Committee of the Regions´opinion adopted yesterday calls on the local and regional authorities, EU Member States, European Commission, and the Committee of the Regions, to join forces to further support Fair Trade. Specifically, it calls on the need to adopt a European Strategy and action plan for Fair Trade for Local and Regional Authorities. A large number of local and regional authorities are already very active in supporting Fair Trade. Their Fair Trade Public Procurement policies, awareness-campaigns, and cooperation with Fair Trade projects in the South are witness to the local and regional authorities’ commitment in support of marginalised producers and workers in the South.

One of the key tools for local and regional authorities to support Fair Trade is by promoting Fair Trade Public Procurement. EFTA´s Public Affairs Project has put in place a European Observatory on Fair Trade Public Procurement, which provides information and best practices to this end³. The European Parliament issued a Resolution on Fair Trade and Development in 2006, to which the Commission has only given partial follow-u³. Since then, the Fair Trade networks have been calling on the European Commission to come up with a comprehensive Fair Trade work plan.

Corbalán states,

“The new European Commission should not turn a deaf ear to the clear and loud message from local and regional authorities and also adopt a Fair Trade work plan for the coming years.”

The Fair Trade movement look forward to continuing the cooperation with EU Institutions, EU Member States, local and regional authorities with the goal of improving the livelihoods of marginalised producers and workers in the South.

Fair Trade Advocacy Office Note

The Fair Trade Advocacy Office (FTAO) welcomes the EC Communication on FT and agrees that FT should remain voluntary. At the same time the FTAO calls on the local and regional authorities, EU Member States, European Commission, and the Committee of the Regions, to join forces to further support Fair Trade. It praises the Fair Trade Towns Campaign and encourages authorities to get the title. Last but not least the FTAO recognises that a large number of local and regional authorities are already very active in supporting Fair Trade and calls on the need to adopt a European Strategy and action plan for Fair Trade for Local and Regional Authorities.

(1) CoR 214/2009 rev. 1 - RELEX-IV-026
(2) World Fair Trade Organisation (WFTO): www.wfto.com, Fairtrade Labelling Organisations International (FLO):
www.fairtrade.net and the European Fair Trade Association (EFTA): www.european-fair-trade-association.org/efta/
(3) European Observatory on Fair Trade Public Procurement: www.eftafairtrade.org/observatory
(4) Communication from the Commission: Contributing to Sustainable Development: The role of Fair Trade and nongovernmental trade-related sustainability assurance schemes, 5th May 2009 COM(2009) 215 final

At a Public Meeting in April 2000 the people of Garstang declared their town a Fairtrade Town. There are now over 760 Fair Trade Towns in 19 countries worldwide. Don’t miss out on this very special international celebration.

For further details and to buy tickets go to: www.garstangfairtrade.org.uk

If one is to buy products such as tea, coffee and bananas that can only be grown in developing countries it makes sense to buy Fairtrade products. The Fairtrade Foundation’s discussion paper Egalité, Fraternité, Sustainabilité: why the climate revolution must be a fair revolution clearly demonstrates how supporting Fairtrade can support a fair global response to climate change. In some cases fewer carbon emissions actually result from growing and transporting Fairtrade products than local. In terms of carbon emissions per kg of food transported, container ships are a very efficient method of transport - such that the ocean miles only make up a very small part of the product’s total carbon footprint. There are more than 4,500 Fairtrade certified products in the UK alone, and with just one exception all of these products come to the UK by container ship.  The one exception is Fairtrade flowers grown and flown over from Kenya, but even in this case they require less energy than from those grown in European heated greenhouses. Another example is the carbon footprint for Tate and Lyle’s Fairtrade cane sugar, which is estimated at 380gm carbon per kg sugar, whereas Silver Spoon’s sugar extracted from European sugar beet is far greater at 500gm per kg; a 32% increase on the amount of carbon emitted per kg sugar.

In Belgium and Canada a sixth goal has been added to the basic five criteria required to become a Fairtrade Town. This additional goal is aimed at encouraging support for local and sustainable produce. Future Fair Trade Town initiatives will be launched in the European New Member States of Poland and the Czech Republic, where due to the problems associated with rural development in these countries, a similar sixth goal on local produce is likely to be adopted. Although support for local produce is not included amongst the Fairtrade Town criteria in the UK, sometimes the wording of the resolution required to meet Goal 1 includes support for local produce as well as Fairtrade.

Fairtrade Town groups in the UK and Germany have successfully combined the two issues in their campaigns. Indeed the meal that took place in Garstang during Fairtrade Fortnight 2000, which led to the launch of Fairtrade Towns worldwide, was made up entirely of Fairtrade and local produce. Much of the local produce was freely donated by local farmers. The rural market town of Garstang has continued to marry the two issues at every possible opportunity. In 2002 students from the local Myerscough Agricultural College took part in a debate to answer the question “Garstang and Ghana – why do their farmers get a raw deal?”  At the event testimonies were heard from local farmers, cocoa and banana farmers from Ghana, the local MP, the Fairtrade Foundation, the Farmers World Network, the Co-op and Nestle. Likewise in Germany, their first Fairtrade Town, Saarbrücken try to promote “Bio, regional, fair” (organic, local and fair trade) whenever possible. Back in the UK, Fairtrade Town campaigns such as Linlithgow and Keynsham bring a Fairtrade element to their local Farmers Markets and the Fairtrade Group in Wrexham produced a recipe booklet to demonstrate how local and fair trade can sit happily together on the meal table.

It is not only in the rural areas however, where Fairtrade has been linked to local produce. The UK based Fairtrade Association Birmingham (FAB) campaigned on local produce long before Birmingham became a Fairtrade City in November 2005. Following the call in 2002 for the FAIRTRADE Mark to be adapted for use on British produce the Fair Deal Awards were organised by the not-for-profit think tank Localise West Midlands. Fair Deal Awards are given to buyers who have been nominated by local farmers for paying them a fair price. Discussions in Germany have also resulted in local dairy farmers demanding a “fair price for milk”, because the price presently paid barely covers the cost of production.

The Welsh and Scottish Fair Trade Forums formed an alliance with their corresponding Farmer’s Unions to collectively call for a fair deal for food producers, whether local or in the developing world. The Wales Fair Trade Forum produced information leaflets specifically explaining the reasons to support both campaigns. Jim McLaren, NFU Scotland President, said: “At first, Fairtrade and Scottish farming might seem unlikely bedfellows since Fairtrade is generally associated with the developing world. In reality however, NFU Scotland and the Scottish Fair Trade Forum share key common values. We both work to ensure food is produced in a manner that promotes and enhances the sustainability of agriculture and the wellbeing of families who rely on it. We both want a ‘Fair Deal’ for producers, whether for farmers in Scotland or in places like Malawi”. John McAllion, Chair of the Scottish Fair Trade Forum, adds: “There need be no conflict between buying Fairtrade and buying local produce. Buy local meat, potatoes and dairy products to support your local economy and buy quality Fairtrade coffee, tea and other products that can’t be grown locally to help Fairtrade producers in the developing world get a fair deal”.

Another question to ask is just what do we mean by ‘buying local’. This should not be confused with patriotism. Transporting apples from France to the South East corner of Britain for example, will result in fewer carbon emissions and is more geographically local than if consumers there were to buy apples from the South West of England. Buying local is often driven by our increasing concern over food quality, its provenance and the need to ‘trust’ the food we buy. It is this same concern that helps to drive Fairtrade. While it is possible to go to a Farmers market, meet the farmer and hear more about where our food comes from, this is not possible with internationally traded products. Fairtrade however, does go some way to providing that same connection with producers, reducing the power of middle men and enabling greater trust in the consumer.

We need to explore our reasoning for supporting local produce and for that we need to carefully define just what we mean by ‘local’. Perhaps we should be asking what is local and sustainable? What is local alone is not enough. Food miles are typically only a very small proportion of the total carbon footprint of the product. Even taking just the transport part: there’s more energy used (per kg of food) in the last six shopping-bag miles than in 6000 ocean-container miles. It is estimated that on average in the UK, 87% of transport’s carbon costs for a product arise after the product has arrived in the country.  Max Havelaar Belgium have defined the criteria for sustainable consumption of local products (not Fairtrade) into the following four categories (the four P’s):

-      Product: consumption according to the season, organic, locally produced, less meat, little packaging, cooking with basic ingredients (not processed or pre-cooked) and GM free.

-      Price: fair trade, a realistic price for producers in our regions, a reasonable salary for every actor in the supply chain

-      Place: buying large amounts once a week in the supermarket, buying at the farm, system of subscription to weekly fruit and vegetable packages

-      Promotion/information: close contact with farmers, information about producer and the supply chain.

One simple point to finish on: by definition buying local means keeping your money in the local economy which may make sense, but remember if you spend money in your own locality and that locality is rich (relatively) it will only tend to further  widen the world’s rich-poor divide.

Egalité, fraternité, sustainabilité

As the climate crisis looms, this discussion paper looks at the role of the Fairtrade movement in a just, global response to climate change. From the movement’s experience and networks, to the role Fairtrade plays in directly supporting adaptation to climate change by small farmers in countries of the global south and our contribution to debates around sustainable consumption. This discussion paper looks at why climate change is a central issue for the Fairtrade movement and explores our response and role.

The Public Affairs team needs you! They are currently conducting research about Fair Trade and Public Procurement at the national and European level to identify existing best practice and create a European model for Fair Trade Public Procurement. If you know public purchasers with best practice to share and want to be part of shaping the future of Fair Trade in European Public Procurement, please take this opportunity to make sure their example helps and inspires other local authorities to bring about positive change. Please share your story and get in touch - assistant@eftafairtrade.org!

To find out more, please visit the project’s new website - the European Observatory - to find top tips and case studies, including guides on Fair Trade Public Procurement, relevant European Union legislation, past newsletters, best practices and much more…

In order to raise greater awareness on Fair Trade Public Procurement with different stakeholders, the project also runs seminars and workshops, school lessons and training courses for local and European Fair Trade volunteers as well as public authorities.

The Public Affairs Project and partners, with the Fair Trade Advocacy Office (FTAO), have been following the developments within the European Union Institutions regarding Fair Trade and Public Procurement and advocating for the European legislation to be as favourable to Fair Trade Public Procurement as possible. Watch this space for the latest updates!

The new website at www.fairtradetowns.org combines information about the history of Fairtrade Towns internationally, a Google map, the latest news and events, downloadable resources and tools. It also has an exciting interactive social networking section where campaigners can share ideas through forums and discussion groups. It’s currently available in eight languages and is part of a three-year European Union funded Fairtrade Towns in Europe project launched in 2007. The site has been designed by award-winning digital communication company Reading Room.

Founder of Garstang the world’s first Fairtrade Town, Fairtrade Towns Coordinator Bruce Crowther says: ‘We hope the new website will help inspire, inform and unite Fairtrade Towns across Europe and provide Fairtrade Town activists with a space to share ideas, resources and advice online.’

The Fairtrade Towns movement has been rapidly growing since Garstang became the first Fairtrade Town in the UK in 2001. International Fairtrade cities including Brussels, Copenhagen, Oslo, Rome, Stockholm and San Francisco are now part of a collective peoples’ push, changing the way trade is done. Earlier, this year an International Towns Conference conference took place in Lyon bringing together  representatives from more than 17 countries.

Blanca Sanchez, Fair Trade Towns Coordinator, from Spanish non-governmental organisation IDEAS Commercio Justo welcomes the new site. She says: ‘This site will join thousands of people from different countries. Fairtrade Towns is an amazing international movement that is helping to create a fairer world with small gestures and thanks to the international Fairtrade Towns site, campaigners from all around the world will be able to share and learn from others’ experiences.’

In the UK, there are currently 441 Fairtrade Towns. To become a Fairtrade Town (including villages, cities, islands, zones, boroughs and counties) five goals must be met, including getting local businesses, workplaces and community groups to use Fairtrade products, thereby supporting farmers in developing countries. More information about the five goals is available on the website.

In a recent survey by GlobeScan and commissioned by Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO), of which the Fairtrade Foundation is the UK member, around 14,500 people in 15 countries were asked about their shopping habits. Results revealed that almost three quarters of shoppers believe it is not enough for companies to do no harm, but that they should actively support community development in developing countries.

In 2008, worldwide sales of Fairtrade products grew by an impressive 22% in 2008 as consumers spent an estimated 2.9 billion Euros on Fairtrade products globally. Fairtrade sales grew by at least 50% in seven countries, including Australia and New Zealand (72%), Canada (67%), Finland (57%), Germany (50%), Norway (73%), and Sweden (75%). In the UK, sales of Fairtrade certified products increased by 43%.

In addition to being paid a price which covers the costs of sustainable production, producer organizations receive a Fairtrade Premium, additional income for community development projects. In 2008, the Fairtrade Premium contributed over €12 million to Fairtrade coffee farmers and over €11 million to Fairtrade banana farmers alone.

Bruce Crowther says: ‘The international Fairtrade Towns movement is growing and gathering momentum as the launch of this new website shows. This is an exciting time because Fairtrade started as a grassroots campaign. The growth of Fairtrade is testimony to the power of ordinary people working together who have changed the way trade works, to support farmers, their families and communities in developing countries.’