Fair Trade in Eastern Europe

Fair trade is becoming more popular in Eastern Europe - activist groups raise awareness of the region's responsibility and open an increasing number of Fair Trade locations. The Coalition for Fair Trade in Poland brings together various types of local groups in different towns around the country. The groups united in the Polish Coalition for Fair Trade promote their ideas and also commercialise Fair Trade products. So far, products are not directly imported from the countries of origin, but bought from Western European Fair Trade companies in Germany and in Great Britain, for example. More and more people are interested in Fair Trade, and various groups are educating the public about the importance of it, IPS News reports.
 

The Society for Fair Trade in the Czech Republic currently runs two world-shops and four further selling points. A third of the products they sell come from Italy, and the rest is being imported from Western European companies. The group is now looking abroad and working to start a new platform for meeting and cooperation of Fair Trade organisations from central, eastern and southern Europe. Many organisations from Europe have expressed an interest in this cooperation. Hungarian Fair Trade promoters are also working on networking with groups, and connections have been established with activist groups from countries like Romania and Bulgaria. Hungarian groups working on Fair Trade promotion have cooperated with one another from the beginning of the movement in Hungary. Groups have organised consumption events, for example, and run educational programmes in five cities around the country. The Hungarian Fair Trade movement provides the office of the Hungarian President with coffee.
 
IPS News