Fairtrade Fortnight coming soon

This month it's Fairtrade Fortnight, celebrating everything Fairtrade and the fortnight starts on Monday, 28th February.  The nearest town to Teddington to achieve Fairtrade status is Kingston  - perhaps Teddington should apply in the future too?

We often see the Fairtrade blue and green logo mark on products such as tea, coffee and chocolate etc that have been awarded Fairtrade status.  This is where suppliers are paid an agreed price for products and where community projects are supported.

One area of concern for Fairtrade and for consumers has been gold and the mining of gold.  To coincide with Valentine’s Day, 20 jewellery companies have launched the world’s first Fairtrade and Fairmined gold products for the UK.  The jewellery will go on sale soon and all pieces will be hallmarked with the Fairtrade mark. 

The initiative has the support of nearby Chiswick’s Livia Firth who is quickly becoming a worldwide spokesperson for eco friendly and Fairtrade products. And she’s been jet-setting with award winning actor, Colin Firth.  Have you seen The King’s Speech?  You can see the jewellery at the London Jewellery Week will be held on 6th-11th June this year.  Do you think an eco shop would be popular in Teddington? 

I had a look around to see where you can buy Fairtrade products here in Teddington.

The supermarkets stock Fairtrade products, as an example, Marks and Spencer Earl Grey Teabags shows the Fairtrade logo guaranteeing the Fairtrade minimum price, plus the Fairtrade premium, which invests in the community projects.

Teddington’s charity shops stock Fairtrade items, as an example, Oxfam sells coffee, tea, chocolate, bath products and kitchen cleaning products.

Teddington’s Caffe Caffe, sells Illy coffee.  Some coffee makers source the best beans in the coffee growing markets but opt for the direct relationships with growers and negotiate prices that support investing in the quality of the coffee and in the environment and community projects.

Teddington’s unique coffee roasters, Astrora, are coffee experts and can advise you on where their coffee comes from, how it is grown, and the ethics behind the coffee for sale within the shop.  Do go in for a chat with Mojca, about Fairtrade and about why not to keep coffee in the fridge!  You can also buy British chocolate Montezuma and nearby Brentford's Tea Pigs range at Astrora too.

Do you buy Fairtrade products and where do you go to buy them?