UK: Fairtrade sales well over £ 1 billion

The Fairtrade Foundation has launched Fairtrade Fortnight 2011 on 28 of February by announcing that sales of Fairtrade products soared by 40 % in 2010 to an estimated retail value of £ 1.17 billion -compared with £ 836 million in 2009. Figures released by the Fairtrade Foundation reveal that every day in the UK, some 9.3 million cups of Fairtrade tea, 6.4 million cups of Fairtrade coffee, 2.3 million chocolate bars, 530,000 cups of Fairtrade drinking chocolate and 3.1 million Fairtrade bananas are consumed. New categories are also growing with over 1 million cosmetic products using Fairtrade ingredients also being sold in 2010. (Picture by Simon Rawles: Punjiben and Laxmiben, cotton farmers, Agrocel, India)

Support for Fairtrade in local communities continues to surge in the UK, where the Fairtrade Mark is recognised by 74 % of the public. Vibrant community campaigns in more than 500 Fairtrade Towns across the UK, along with thousands of schools and universities and faith groups (Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu), are helping the public make a personal and local connection to Fairtrade. Responding to that public support, major company moves to Fairtrade which have contributed to 2010 growth figures include Cadbury Dairy Milk, all Starbucks espresso-based coffee, Nestle’s four-finger KitKat, Sainsbury’s tea, coffee and sugar, Morrison’s roast and ground coffee, Tesco Finest Tea, and Tate & Lyle retail sugar. And the growth is set to continue throughout 2011 with Ben & Jerry’s still rolling out their commitment to make every ingredient they use, from sugar to nuts to cocoa, Fairtrade that can be Fairtrade in the UK by the end of 2011, and Green & Black’s conversion of their entire range of chocolate bars and beverages in the UK to 100 % Fairtrade by the end of this year. (Picture by Simon Rawles: Raking the cocoa beans, Conacado, Dominican Republic)
 

Fresh commitments for Fairtrade Fortnight 2011 include The Co-operative’s announcement to convert all commodities that can be Fairtrade to Fairtrade by 2013, starting with bananas; Topshop’s launch of a new range of Fairtrade cotton denim; Waitrose’s conversion of the majority of Waitrose Tea to Fairtrade as well as several products in the Duchy Originals range; M&S’s introduction of a new Fairtrade cotton range as part of its Indigo Green label; and the spice and herb company Schwartz’s announcement that it is launching four new Fairtrade herbs - basil, mint, marjoram and dill – later in the year. Meanwhile, Aldi is launching its first Fairtrade product range, including bananas, coffee, tea and chocolate; and Sainsbury’s will offer a new coffee for Comic Relief from the Democratic Republic of Congo, aimed at helping farmers in a conflict-ridden land. The pioneering Fairtrade companies have also introduced new products including the first Fairtrade raisins from Afghanistan launched by Tropical Wholefoods to support small-scale farmers in the Parwan province. TKMaxx and Comic Relief are using Fairtrade certified cotton from Mali for this year’s Red Nose Day T-shirts, designed by Vivienne Westwood. The Fairtrade Foundation has broken new ground too with the world’s first Fairtrade and Fairmined gold, from artisanal miners in Colombia, Peru and Bolivia, in partnership with the Alliance for Responsible Mining, with 21 companies already signed up to take part in the scheme. More detailed information is available here