George Alagiah, BBC News presenter and Patron of the Fairtrade Foundation presented the award of Fairtrade County status to Cllr. John Collier, Chair of Cumbria County Council on 11 March 2006, at a special reception at Keswick School, attended by over 150 campaigners from all over the county. Cumbria became only the second county to receive such an award, Somerset being the first.

This recognises the extent to which Fairtrade products are available in shops and cafes/catering outlets throughout Cumbria. It also reflects the large number of workplaces and community organisations (churches, schools etc), in addition to Cumbria County Council itself, that serve and use Fairtrade products.

Fairtrade certified products (which in addition to coffees and teas, chocolates and bananas, include wines, snack bars, oranges, pineapples, a range of cotton products and even footballs!) ensure that 5 million people, smallholder farmers, workers on plantations and their families in 58 countries across the developing world, receive a fairtrade "premium" on top of a guaranteed minimum price, which is enabling them to escape exploitation and to make them more healthy, educated and secure.

"Fairtrade is not just about buying and selling. It is about creating a global family" - Tadesse Mekela, General Manager, Oromia Coffee Farmers’ Cooperative Union, Ethiopia.
Old School House, Silecroft

Related Links :

• www.cumbriafairtrade.org.uk - shows where to buy.

Go to Menu :

• Food and Drink in Cumbria