WHERE?
Nowadays more than 700 Fairtrade products are distributed in Italy in more than 5,000 retail outlets like supermarkets, cafeterias, automatic machines and canteens.
The Italian companies that have chosen Fairtrade certification are about 145.
Some of the most important supermarkets are:
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Iper, which sells Bio Green Tea
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Bennet , which sells 100% Arabic Coffee, White Chocolate, Extra Dark Chocolate,
Bio Black Tea and Bio Green Tea
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Auchan , which sells pineapple, Gayo mountain Coffee, Milk Chocolate,
Extra Dark Chocolate, spreadable cream with hazelnuts
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Carrefour, which sells Bio bananas, Bio bitter cocoa, coffee ,
every type of chocolate, Bio Brown Sugar and light yogurt
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Esselunga, which sells 100% Arabic Coffee, White Chocolate,
Extra Dark Chocolate, Bio Black Tea and Bio Green Tea, bananas
WHY?
We should buy fair trade products because we know for sure that these products weren’t made or grown by children used as slaves in factories and plantations. In fact these products are produced by women and men who are paid according to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Labour Standards.
The first one establishes that all people must have the right to be paid a sum of money which allows them and their family to live well. The second one is a system of international labour standards aimed at promoting opportunities for women and men in order to obtain decent and productive work, in conditions of freedom , equity , security and dignity.
It was created by the International Labour Organization ( ILO ) which is a specialized agency of the UN which gives an equal voice to workers, employers and governments.
When we buy fair trade products we pay a little more.
This happens because of the Fair trade Premium. The price of fair trade items is divided in two parts: one is effective salary which is given to workers for their work, the other part is the fair trade premium, which is an additional sum of money which goes into a communal fund for workers and farmers to use to improve their social, economic and environmental conditions. For examples, they use this money to build schools, buildings, bridges and roads for their community.
WHAT CAN WE REALLY DO?
There are some things that we can do to help the fair trade commerce. First of all we have the power of choosing fair trade chocolate, coffee, tea and clothes, even if they are a little more expensive.
Then we can organize different activities in order to promote fair trade.
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Fashion show: a beneficiary event in which models wear clothes made with the fair trade brand and then after the parade people can buy through an auction the clothes seen before. The profit obtained will be used to buy machineries for the production of these clothes.
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Sponsorship: famous athletics can use the fair trade brand on their t-shirt during competition and help to promote fair trade. In this way we can make people aware about these products and convince people to buy them.
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Fair trade festivals: we can organize a festival with food, music and entertainment for everyone. The money collected from this event will be used to grow the communal fund to help people involved in the production of fair trade raw materials to create new infrastructure.
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Supermarkets like Iper, Auchan Carrefour, Esselunga and Bennet can add a page dedicated to the fair trade products that they sell on their catalogues. So in this way they can make people aware about the existence of these products in their shops.
With our choice, we can make the world a better place!
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