The Co-operative Food switches all own-brand hot beverages to Fairtrade
The Fairtrade Foundation welcomes The Co-operative Food’s commitment to convert its entire own-brand hot beverage range to Fairtrade. The switch will mean that all its own-brand coffee and tea - including its iconic 99 Tea - will be Fairtrade, along with its hot chocolate range. The tea will be sourced from Fairtrade certified growers in East Africa and India.
The 100% own-brand hot beverages switch follows The Co-operative’s long standing commitment to the principles of Fairtrade. It was the first supermarket to embrace Fairtrade back in 1994 by stocking Cafédirect coffee, and this move was followed in 2000 by the introduction of the UK’s first Fairtrade bananas. In 2002, the Co-operative switched all its own-label chocolate to Fairtrade and in 2003 followed with all its own-label coffee.
This latest move will benefit producers in some of the world’s poorest countries – Kenya, India, Malawi, Rwanda and Tanzania - who can now sell to UK consumers under better terms of trade. Workers at Kibena tea estate in Tanzania, for example, have previously used the Fairtrade social premium, an additional payment from Fairtrade sales, on education, healthcare and water. They have also managed to build dispensaries, classrooms, housing for teachers, a nursery school, wells and boreholes, latrines at schools, buy school books, and build a maternity ward at the district hospital.
The announcement follows the findings of a six-month consultation programme by The Co-operative with members and customers on the development of the Co-operative Food Ethical Policy, which found that more than one in four members cited ethical trading as their priority, and in particular support for Fairtrade.
Harriet Lamb, Executive Director of the Fairtrade Foundation, said: “The Co-operative’s members clearly put ethical trading as top of their concerns when they go shopping, which is great news for farmers in the developing world. What’s more, people are increasingly recognizing they can use their purchasing power as a way to help tackle poverty in developing countries.
“It must be heartening too for The Co-operative who, for the last 15 years, have shown real leadership in making Fairtrade products widely available and in spreading the Fairtrade message. This latest move to switch all their own-brand tea to Fairtrade hits the spot – meeting their customers’ demand both for a great cup of tea and one that supports producers in developing countries who wish to build a better life.”
Notes to Editors
For more information on The Co-operative research, visit www.co-operative.co.uk