David Kidney Fair trade fortnight

Fair trade fortnight

IT’S FAIRTRADE FORTNIGHT, SHOPPERS

15 January 2010Stafford’s Labour MP David Kidney is asking shoppers in Stafford constituency to shop ethically and support sustainable farming at home and abroad. This coming two weeks (22rd February – 7th March) is Fairtrade Fortnight.

David Kidney welcomes the Labour Government’s plan to boost funding for the Fairtrade labelling system and urges shoppers to look for the Fairtrade Mark on food, gifts and other products in the shops:

“Over 4,500 products have been licensed to carry the Fairtrade Mark and there are over 460 producer organisations selling to the UK, representing more than 1.5 million farmers and workers in developing countries. Labour’s latest investment will bring another 1 million producers into the scheme and enable 7 million more people in poor countries to benefit from a better deal offered by Fairtrade.

“Small changes in our shopping habits can make a big difference to the world’s poorest people. By buying food, gifts and other products from developing countries we will help grow their economies and reduce poverty.

“At the same time, I want to stress to shoppers that buying locally-produced food is also socially responsible and aids a more sustainable way of living for everyone. That’s why I have been campaigning for “Taste of Staffordshire” to become a brand that we can label across Staffordshire as a sign that our food is locally produced.

“When consumers and retailers act together to promote and buy goods ethically, we can make a real difference to the world we live in. We can support more sustainable development in the UK and overseas, support jobs in farming locally and help some of the poorest people globally.”

Labour has supported Fairtrade since 1997 with funding from the Department for International Development (DFID). This year Labour is quadrupling funding to £12m over the next four years (2010-13). Farmers in developing countries will also see twice as much money invested directly back through their local organisations for community projects such as irrigation and clinics through "Fairtrade Premiums".

Since 1997, aid increases and debt cancellation have helped to get 40 million more children into school, while the number of people with access to AIDS treatment has increased from just 100,000 to over 4 million. The proportion of the world’s population living in poverty has fallen from a third to a quarter thanks to a combination of both aid and trade. Last year alone, Labour’s Department for International Development helped train over 100,000 teachers, vaccinate more than three million children against measles, provide a million people with clean water, protect seven million people with anti-malaria bednets and give more than 12 million people access to better sanitation.