Bradford marked Fairtrade Fortnight in a big way with events taking place across the city; including a Fairtrade breakfast at the Cathedral and tastings at the University and at the prestigious Broadway Shopping Centre.  At Broadway free Fairtrade tastings were provided by M&S.

Shoppers are delighted at Bradford Broadway

University of Bradford students dress for the occasion

Dean Jerry welcomes diners to the Bradford Cathedral breakfast

Ros Stanley of Fairtrade Cherry Burton gives a roundup of Fairtrade Fortnight in the East Riding village:

Great excitement this year as not only did we say ‘Come on In to Fairtrade’ but also celebrated our 15th Birthday as a Fairtrade Village!

Breakfast in Cherry Burton

Two fabulous Fairtrade Birthday cakes were ceremonially cut and shared at the Fairtrade breakfast after a delicious feast produced by farmers from Fairtrade co-operatives and from Yorkshire. The place was abuzz with over 80 happy breakfasters keeping the volunteers very busy.

A warm welcome down at the Bay Horse in Cherry

Media interest started before Christmas with plans for a February feature on Fairtrade in Cherry Burton. This was in a large format local glossy magazine, ‘The Journal’ which has a wide circulation. BBC local radio also got in touch to find out what Cherry Burton was up to. They broadcast several live interviews with event organisers during the Fortnight. A preview of ‘Come On In to Fairtrade in Cherry Burton’ was published in Beverley Life, the monthly local paper.

The village shop had a special Fairtrade display and increased its range of Fairtrade products. The ‘Bay Horse’ went all out for Fairtrade with Fairtrade displays, balloons, bunting, and a menu featuring Fairtrade desserts. They also held a Fairtrade coffee morning and raffle as a fund raiser for Fairtrade adding significantly to the collecting box that had been on the bar during the Fortnight. Customers at ‘I Love Kitchens’ were invited to ‘Come On In’ with Fairtrade tea, coffee and cookies.

Cherry Burton Primary School started the Fortnight with a whole school assembly on Where Our Food Comes From’ and Fairtrade. Children imagined they lived in Malawi and found out what a difference Fairtrade had made to sugar farmers and their families.

Pre-school had a week of activities including Fairtrade baking and a Fairtrade banana picnic.

Worship and sermons focussed on Fairtrade issues at St Michael’s church. This is a Fairtrade church which hosts the village Fair Trade stall on Sunday mornings after the morning service when everyone is relaxing and chatting over Fairtrade coffee and tea in the Centre. This year the Rector ran an additional evening taking ‘A Closer Look at Fairtrade’ in the Centre with Fairtrade tasters – coffee, tea, chocolate, nuts, banana chips, raisins and apricots.

Much of the village integrates Fairtrade year-round. It is this widespread engagement with and support of Fairtrade that has enabled Cherry Burton to continue to be a Fairtrade Village since 2003.

MP’s were invited to ‘come on in’ to Fairtrade at a special event held at Westminster.

Karen meets with Nick Hewer and her own MP, John Grogan (Keighley)

Halifax MP, Holly Lynch is the Co-Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Fairtrade.  Along with MPs from all the parties at Westminster, she met with Fair Trade producers and Fair Trade activists, including Karen Palframan from Fairtrade Bradford Zone and Fairtrade Yorkshire.  The Fairtrade producers were:

Mahyana Sari – Secretary, Arinigata Cooperatives, Indonesia (coffee producers); Marcial Quintero – Coobana, Panama (banana growers); John Joseph ­– Founder and Chairperson, WOFFA, India (coffee producer) and Ketra Kyosiimire – ACPCU (Ankole Coffee Producers Cooperative Union), Uganda.

The gathering was joined by business guru, Fairtrade Ambassador and former Apprentice star, Nick Hewer.  In total 88 MP’s and Peers attended the event; a larger number than expected, which led to the Fairtrade icecream running out.

Holly Lynch MP (centre) welcomes the Fairtrade producers to Westminster

Oxfam Shops across Yorkshire celebrated Fairtrade Fortnight with window displays and special promotions.  During the fortnight Fairtrade Yorkshire’s Karen Palframan visited her local Oxfam shop in the lovely town of Ilkley.

Karen Palframan (left) and the Chair of Fairtrade Ilkley outside their local Oxfam shop.

Coordinator of Fairtrade Yorkshire, Mark Dawson commented: “Oxfam has once again done us proud during Fairtrade Fortnight.  Oxfam has been there at the start of Fairtrade, without them we wouldn’t be where we are today.  The Fairtrade concept needs the dedicated pioneer organisations such as Oxfam, we know that we can rely on them because they share the same values.”

Fairtrade Village, Haworth held a bake off competition to celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight.

Rita of Fairtrade Haworth and Sandy Docherty

On the 3rd March the Little Haworth Bake Off took place and the event was honoured by the appearance of celebrity judge, Sandy Docherty.  Sandy was a contestant in the 2015 Great British Bake Off.  Tables were turned, with Sandy judging Haworth residents’ baking.  Residents were charged with the task of baking using Fair Trade ingredients and there were many very successful bakes.

The campaign keeping Refugee #FamiliesTogether, which is part of ‘Stand As One’ led by Oxfam and Amnesty International, has secured a victory.  On March 16th MPs voted to support a Bill that, if successful, will help keep families together, by proposing important changes to the rules that allow refugee families to reunite in the UK.

The ‘Stand As One’ campaign at York’s Fishergate Fair

This is a huge step forward for refugees in the UK who are desperate to be reunited with their families.

Restrictive government rules are leaving refugees isolated, traumatised and alone in the UK, knowing that the people they love still face untold dangers in other countries.

Thanks to pressure from campaigners and concerned members of the public, 129 MPs have shown true leadership. We’re one step closer to the introduction of new rules, which would mean fewer children have to grow up alone, fewer young women are left stranded in war zones and fewer elderly parents are forced to fend for themselves.

An exciting new book has been published by York Fair Trade Forum.  Edited by experienced educationalists, it is suitable for use in the classroom or by youth groups.

Every Fair Trade group should have a copy (or several).

We all depend on people and countries from far and near for the things we use and eat every day.  What we buy affects the lives of the people who grow, produce and make what we buy.  So, many of us buy fair traded, or ‘Fairtrade’ goods, which give those who produce them a fair price and better working conditions.

There is a long history, in many different countries of people who have helped to improve the lives of producers by selling only goods which had been fairly produced.

Read about just 10 of these courageous and visionary ‘champions’ in this book.

Buy 1-10 copies    £4 each plus postage

Buy 11-20 copies   £3.75 each plus postage

Buy 21 -24 copies    £3.50 each plus postage

Buy over 25 copies    £3.50 free postage

Orders from:

helen@fairtradeyork.com

By post: Book sales c/o Fairer World, 84 Gillygate York YO317EQ

In October, Fairtrade campaigners took a stand against the mean decision of supermarket giant ‘Sainsbury’s’ to abandon the Fairtrade certificate for tea in favour of launching their own ‘fairly traded’ scheme.  The new scheme will have a different approach to the distribution of the Fairtrade premium.  Whereas Fairtrade guarantees a premium which is paid to producer groups for them to decide how it will be spent to the benefit of their communities, Sainsbury’s will require that their producers will have to apply to a central committee to receive a premium.  The committee will vet the application, deciding what is in the best interests of the producers.  We at Fairtrade Yorkshire believe that the producers are the best people to decide what their earnings should be spent on.

York Fair Trade Forum members protest at Sainsbury’s York Foss Bank store.

On October 28th there was a national day of action in protest at Sainsbury’s decision.

Check out #NotMyCupofTea on Twitter to see just a snippet of the action: http://bit.ly/2inWPBx

Online, campaigners targeted 85% of stores. Offline, people did a huge amount – from craftivism to improvised drama in the checkout queue.

The National Fairtrade Supporter Conference was held on 7th October at King’s College in London.

Yorkshire’s own Holly Lynch gave a storming performance, motivating the delegates to action.  Holly, who was re-elected this year as the MP for Halifax (with an increased majority) is Co-Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Fairtrade.

Karen Palframan (National Campaigner rep for Yorkshire) and Holly Lynch MP at the Supporter Conference

Holly shared how important it is for Fairtrade groups to engage with politicians, and she also detailed the work of the APPG in promoting the Fairtrade agenda in Parliament.

Thanks also to the other fantastic keynote speakers who informed, inspired and challenged us:

George Kporye, Fairtrade Officer at Golden Exotics Ltd, Ghana and Board member of Fairtrade Africa’s West Africa Network spoke about the impact of Fairtrade for banana workers in Ghana.

Barbara Gwinnett, Chair of the National Campaigner Committee (NCC) spoke about the crucial role of grassroots campaigners in the Fairtrade movement, and how the NCC works with the Fairtrade Foundation to advise on its campaigning work.

Michael Gidney, Chief Executive of the Fairtrade Foundation highlighted the progress of the Fairtrade campaign in changing trade, as well as the key challenges and opportunities for the movement in the coming years.

Dario Soto Abril, CEO of Fairtrade International closed the conference with inspirational words linking the activities in communities across the UK and tangible shifts in living standards in communities around the world thanks to better prices and jobs that Fairtrade brings to millions of farmers and workers.

Haworth, the world’s first Fairtrade Village, was the chosen destination for a Fairtrade fact-finding visit by Megumi Morita from Japan. She is from Zushi, Japan’s third Fairtrade town, which lies on the coast, south west of Tokyo.

Fairtrade campaigners (from left) Ruth Drury, John Drury, Bruce Crowther, Chris Upton, (Megumi Morita,) Karen Palframan, Adrian Farley, Nick Drury, Rita Verity and others met in Haworth to welcome Megumi Morita from Japan.

After attending the recent International Fair Trade Towns conference in Saarbrucken with Bruce Crowther MBE, founder of the global Fairtrade Town initiative and Director of the Fig Tree, Megumi came to the UK to discover more about collaborative Fairtrade initiatives in this country.

Haworth Fairtrade Group members organised an informative itinerary, which included visiting West Lane Baptist Church, the Bronte Parsonage, Sonia’s Smile Fair Trade shop and the KWVR station in Haworth. The day started at the church cinema with photos and videos from past Haworth and regional Fairtrade events such as ‘Chuffin’ Fair’, ‘Fair Intents’, the cycling Fairtrade bananas ‘Tour de France’ video (filmed in Haworth for Fairtrade Yorkshire, see www. fairtradeyorkshire.org.uk), the ‘Sit down for breakfast, stand up for farmers’ KWVR steam train Fairtrade breakfast, and this spring’s Fairtrade and Bronte walk from Thornton to Haworth.

Megumi gave a presentation about Zushi’s activities to gain Fairtrade town status and there was time for her to discuss wider campaigning issues with Keighley Fairtrade group member and Bradford Council Fairtrade champion Cllr Adrian Farley, and chair of Bradford Fairtrade Zone, Karen Palframan. Diane Fare hosted Meg at the Brontë Parsonage Museum and explained more about Rev Patrick Brontë and his campaigns for social justice, including better sanitation, education and workers’ rights.

Bruce Crowther confirmed, “It was a pleasure to bring Megumi to Haworth on behalf of The FIG Tree Fair Trade Centre as part of her tour and see how the Haworth campaign is supported by the schools, churches, local authority and businesses. We were both impressed to see the number of Fair Trade events held in and around Haworth since becoming a Fairtrade Town in 2002 and how the campaign connects with the tourist attractions and local heritage. We now have 2,000 Fair Trade Towns in 29 countries.”

Many thanks to Liz Barker and Worth and Aire Valley Magazines for kind permission to reprint this article.  Thanks also to John Sargent for the photographs.