There’s nothing like finding a hidden gem in an antique shop, charity shop or thrift fair. The thrill of finding a fashion or furniture piece that hold links to the past and its very own story is quite unlike any other shopping experience. However, with today’s fashion trends embracing and popularising the vintage look, these wonderful one-off pieces are sadly becoming hard to come by without the accompaniment of a sizeable price tag. That is, until Scaramanga…

Established in 2006 by Carl Morenikeji, Scaramanga offers a unique range of all things vintage; from fashion accessories and hand-made notebooks through to vintage and retro household furniture and accessories.

And better still, you can buy with a clear conscience, safe in the knowledge that Scaramanga takes great pride in trading fairly with all suppliers. The majority of suppliers are small-scale family run businesses who specialise in traditional artisan and craft based industries that use traditional materials, methods and skills. Additionally, the Scaramanga team always make regular trips to visit suppliers in order to maintain close, long-term relationships and to make sure ethical standards are being met.

Available both online and in store, you can find the popular range of vintage leather satchels and messenger bags which are made using traditional tanning processes, and the huge selection of restored old wooden chests and boxes. You will also find unique pieces of expertly crafted vintage and antique furniture including: chairs, cupboards, old cabinets and vintage mirrors; as well as vintage cushions, bedspreads, jewellery and the large range of more than 30 different hand-bound leather and silky sari journals, sketchbooks and photo albums.

www.scaramangashop.co.uk

Scaramanga is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

By Hand, a family-run fair trade shop specialising in jewellery, eco-friendly bags and batik silk scarves from Indonesia, has recently been accepted as a member of BAFTS – The British Association For Fair Trade Shops.

The British Association For Fair Trade Shops is an association of retailers who are committed to fair trade principles. The Association works to promote fair trade within Britain and is a member of both the World Fair Trade Association and the Trade Justice Movement.

BAFTS recognises the internationally agreed definition of fair trade:

Fair Trade is a trading partnership, based on dialogue, transparency and respect, that seeks a greater equity in international trade. It contributes to sustainable development by offering better trading conditions to, and securing the rights of, marginalised producers and workers – especially in the South.

All members of BAFTS source at least 70% of their stock from recognised fair trade sources. This means that consumers who shop at BAFTS fair trade shops can be confident that they are buying fair trade and that their purchases are directly benefiting the producers.

In the case of By Hand, 90% of the products are sourced from a WFTO organisation based in Bali. The other 10% of products are purchased directly from a small women’s cooperative in the town of Yogyakarta in Java. Yogyakarta is famous for its handicrafts and in particular its batik. In 2006, the town was hit by a serious earthquake, which caused almost 40,000 casualties and left 1.5 million people homeless. The women’s cooperative that supplies By Hand with batik silk scarves is situated in Bantul, one of the areas worst hit by the earthquake, and is providing a valuable source of income to some of the women from the area.

For more information about By Hand, please visit http://www.by-hand.co.uk or visit the By Hand page on the Ethical Junction website.

By Hand is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

What is Fairtrade?

The concept of ‘fair trade’ has been around for over forty years but did not include a formal system until the late 1980s. It was established by Christian Aid, CAFOD, Oxfam, Traidcraft and the World Development Movement and later joined by the Women’s Institute. The first product to be certified was Green & Black’s Maya Gold Chocolate followed by Cafedirect coffee and Clipper tea. The concept has taken off dramatically since these first products were certified and now includes a variety of food, clothing and gift ranges. The Fairtrade Foundation is an independent non-profit organisation which envisions a world in which sustainable development, equality and fair pay form the basis of any trade structure. In order to achieve this, Fairtrade attempts to transform previous trading structures in order to help the disadvantaged and poverty-stricken. They work with businesses, communities and individuals all around the world to improve the trading rights and position of organisations who are often taken advantage of.

Why Should You Buy Fairtrade?

Fairtrade is not just any non-profit organisation. Not only do they provide a fair and honest service to the communities and businesses involved but they also provide the consumer with great quality produce at a fair price. You reap the benefits of investing in Fairtrade products. The Fairtrade certification enables the consumer to make informed decisions about their purchase choices and means they can be safe in the knowledge that their money is providing a reasonable income for those people who are involved. The quality of the produce is well worth the price, especially with the realisation that the people putting in the groundwork get fair compensation for their services.

Fairtrade Towns

Fairtrade also promotes the education of local communities involved with trade structures and issues. As a charity it believes that ordinary people can make a dramatic difference to the livelihood of the producers and aims to increase awareness of this belief. Fairtrade towns are those which are committed to promoting understanding of trade issues in their local community – to find out more please take a look at the Fairtrade website.

Fairtrade Fortnight 2010

Fairtrade Fortnight 2010 took place from the 22^nd of February until the 7^th of March and was labelled ‘the big swap’! Fairtrade asked the nation to swap their usual produce choices to Fairtrade – whether it be coffee, chocolate, fruit or socks. By doing this the general public proved that they care about their responsibility as consumers and can make a real difference to the lives of the people who grow or sew that which we buy, eat and wear. Fairtrade fortnight was a phenomenal success with celebrities such as Emma Watson creating Fairtrade fashion lines, Oxfordshire schools hosting a week of incredible green events and Cadbury’s offering songs from the likes of Paolo Nutini and Sway when you registered your swap to Fairtrade. The nation spoke out and showed the world that Britain cares about the lives of the farmers and workers that provide us with so much of our material goods. Why not try to make the swap to Fairtrade certified products yourself and reap the benefits of great quality products that make a real difference to the lives of the producers.

MoreEco is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight and receive 20% off all items with free UK delivery for orders over £50.

Simply enter FF2010 in the Discount Voucher Code box in the shopping cart for 20% discount!!

Offer starts 22 February and ends 7 March 2010.

Buy online at www.ambanature.co.uk

amba nature is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Myakka are once again supporting Fair Trade Fortnight, an annual event co-ordinated by the Fair Trade Foundation.  Running between 22^nd February and 7^th March this year’s Fair Trade Fortnight centres on a campaign called ‘The Big Swap’.

Somerset based furniture and home accessories retailer, Myakka are supporting the Fair Trade Foundation’s big swap by encouraging customer’s to swap their plastic carrier bags for reusable, fair trade jute shopping bags.  For every ten plastic bags sent in, Myakka will send customers a brand new, hard-wearing jute shopper completely free of charge.  All the plastic bags collected will be sent for recycling.

“It’s not quite as easy to swap your furniture for a fair trade option as it is your tea, coffee or chocolate but we wanted to show support for this increasingly important annual event co-ordinated by the Fair Trade Foundation and came up with the ‘big bag swap’ as a way of taking part,”  commented Simon Whitehead, Director of Myakka.  

Last year, Myakka’s team were part of the record breaking fair trade banana eating campaign which took place between 6^th and 7^th March 2009. Over 380,000 campaigners each ate a fair trade banana during the 24 hour period, smashing the previous record. This year’s ‘Big Swap’ is aiming to generate over one million and one swaps over the two week period and change the lives of millions of suppliers around the World. Swaps are recorded through the online swap-o-meter which can be found on the Fair Trade Foundation’s website: www.fairtrade.org.uk.

To generate a swap customer’s simply need to send ten plastic bags with a return address to:  Myakka, Tythings Commercial Centre, Wincanton, Somerset, BA9 9EQ.  Customers will then be sent a reusable, fair trade jute bag completely free of charge and encouraged to visit the online swap-o-meter to register their swap.

Simon Whitehead actually flies out to India on 22^nd February, the first day of Fair Trade Fortnight, to meet with key suppliers and visit community projects which Myakka are involved in.  Simon will be approving the latest new furniture samples which will be launched in Myakka’s Autumn Catalogue between visits to SKSN School.  Projects include the supply of desks and benches to the local school, a youth training scheme empowering older children with the skills to earn a living and now an apprenticeship scheme to educate older children in carpentry.

Georgie Hopkins concluded, “Most people associate the fair trade label with tea, coffee and chocolate production.  There are many more items produced following fair trade principles which help to offer the people involved what we in the UK take for granted.  Fair Trade Fortnight and The Big Swap campaign is a great opportunity to raise awareness of this.”

Myakka is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Tropical Wholefoods are importing raisins this Spring again from the Shomali Plains just north of Kabul in Afghanistan. Adam Brett and Richard Friend have been working with US Non Governmental Organisation (NGO) Mercy Corps since 2006 on developing a good raisin supply out of Afghanistan into the UK. Part of the brief is to improve the farmer drying of raisins (through introduction of a mat based system). The washing and further grading and de-stalking of the raisins is another stage. Getting Fairtrade Certification for the grape farmers is another goal. It’s been a tricky one to manage because the insecurity in the region rules out any FLO inspectors going to Afghanistan. However, Adam has been working closely with the Fairtrade Foundation and Mercy Corps to try to develop a way in which FLO certification can be available to farmers groups in fragile and precarious states like Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Considerable progress has been made.

The raisins are delicious and sweet, and will be available as bulk and in Tropical Wholefoods retail packs of 200g x 6.

Tropical Wholefoods (Fullwell Mill Ltd) is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

UK tea drinkers consume 165 million cups a day. And 66% of UK tea consumers buy Fairtrade or would be in favour of their preferred tea brand converting to Fairtrade, according to a poll commissioned by international development charity Traidcraft.

The poll is published on International Tea Day, and tea drinkers are already making their views known, having sent over 20,000 postcards to the five brands that dominate the market – PG Tips, Tetleys, Twinings, Typhoo and Yorkshire Tea – calling for them to go Fairtrade.

The call is backed by the Women’s Institute and by Traidcraft, both of whom helped set up the Fairtrade Foundation, which awards the Fairtrade Mark.

An estimated 20 million people in the developing world rely on tea for their livelihoods and UK tea lovers understand the importance of giving tea producers a fair deal with 64% of tea buyers willing to pay more for Fairtrade tea.

The poll also revealed that Welsh tea drinkers top the survey with 25% of Welsh adults drinking five or more cups of tea per day, compared to only 11% of Scots.

The Network of Asian Producers, which includes tea producers in India and Sri Lanka, recently passed a resolution at their General Assembly in Chenai, recognising the unique benefits of Fairtrade: “While there are many labels in the market, Fairtrade is the only scheme which is producer owned, has a good track record on development and is best equipped to provide a better deal for producers via the assurance of a minimum guaranteed price and premium for our development.”

Camilla Porter, Traidcraft head of campaigns, said: “The big tea brands are lagging behind popular consumer brands like Starbucks, Tate & Lyle, Cadbury’s Dairy Milk and Nestlé’s KitKat, which have all made a commitment to Fairtrade.

“Right now there are 80 registered Fairtrade tea producers with spare Fairtrade tea to sell. PG Tips, Tetleys, Twinings, Typhoo and Yorkshire Tea have 72% of the market. Their commitment to Fairtrade would make a lasting difference to the lives of millions of tea workers. 

“The UK is truly a nation of tea lovers and the massive response by consumers calling for Fairtrade shows that they care about the people in the developing world who grow and pick the tea leaves to make our daily cuppas.” 

NFWI Chair Ruth Bond said “As founder members of the Fairtrade Foundation, the WI has long campaigned for many of our household goods to be produced to the Fairtrade standard, which ensures that producers in the developing world get a fair deal.

“This campaign gives tea companies a great opportunity to build on any ethical commitments they already have and show consumers that they are truly committed to giving their tea producers a fair deal.

Ordinary shoppers will really benefit from having a clearly recognisable standard on their favourite tea brand, which can help inform their choices when they do their weekly shopping.”

Eileen Oraputi is a tea picker at an estate in Kenya that is not currently benefitting from Fairtrade. She is 50 years old, and has seven children. She relies on loans to pay for school fees, and feels sick with worry about money. Photo: Traidcraft/David Ngetich 

Adriano benefits from Fairtrade and is a tea plucker at Kibena in Tanzania. Kibena have used the Fairtrade premium to invest in improvements at the primary school, cycle tracks to benefit the tea workers and wider community and a maternity ward. Photo: Traidcraft/Richard Else

Traidcraft is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Background

Over 5 million Nordmann Fir real Christmas trees are sold in the UK each year. About 90% of the seeds for Nordmann Fir Christmas trees are sourced from the natural forests in Georgia through an auction system that is corrupt and generates hardly any income for the cone pickers.

The best seeds come from an area called Ambrolauri. Cone pickers climb 30 metre high fir trees to collect the cones from which the seeds are hand-picked. The cone and seed collectors live in desperately poor conditions with little access to healthcare or education for their children. Local infrastructure in this poverty-stricken and sorely neglected area means that schools are few and far between, and those that do exist are hardly heated in winter, have very few books and many don’t even have doors.

Real life tragic stories

The cone pickers work without any safety equipment, not even ropes. It is not uncommon for collectors to fall out of the trees and die. Here are some sad stories about just a few people from the Ambrolauri area (there are many more!).

• Anna Khedeliana lost her husband Giorgi Enukidze in 2001 whilst he was working for a company harvesting seeds in Tlugi. He climbed up a tall tree which had previously been trimmed at the top in order to make the harvesting easier. When he reached the weakened top it was not able to hold him and both he and the top plummeted to the ground. Giorgi Enukidze was 49 years old and left a wife and three children behind when he died. Since the family had no insurance they were placed in a grave predicament by the death of the husband and father. The state pays only a small annuity as long as the children are under eighteen. The Georgian seed company paid for the funeral and Anna continues to collect seeds for the same company and is still without safety equipment. Her own son has collected 1 ton of cones so far this year.
• Levan Kobakhidze only lived to 16 years of age. His school was closed due to the civil war, and wanting to help his family in Tbilisi, he began working with some friends in the forest. In 1993 while harvesting cones in Tlugi, he fell from a great height when attempting to jump from one tree to another. There was no compensation or insurance. The family barely managed to pay for the funeral, and were unable to give him a proper burial lot. After his son’s death, the father subsequently suffered depression and committed suicide a few years later. He left behind his wife Leila Kobakhidze and his twin daughters, Tea and Teona.
• In 1994 Gaga Namgaladze attempted to jump from one tree to another. Upon landing in a tree, the top snapped and Gaga Namgaladze plunged to the ground and died. He was 26 years old. Gaga Namgaladze left behind a wife and a two-year-old daughter. There was no insurance nor compensation from the state. Together with the rest of his relatives, Gaga’s brother Rati Namgaladze had to help the unfortunate family.

Danish fair trade accreditation – The Bols Xmas Tree Fund

Only one company is currently providing safety equipment, training AND insurance to the workers there; Bols Forstplanteskole grows the only fair trade Christmas trees in the world.

The Bols Xmas Tree Fund was founded in 2007, and shortly afterwards the Fair Trees® brand was certified by Fair Trade Danmark.

The Fund aims to create awareness about and improve the terrible conditions under which the Georgian cone pickers live and work. The Fund provides the cone pickers with Danish-made safety equipment and ensures that the workers are instructed on safety. In addition, the Fund works towards creating proper conditions for workers and their families through financial support for schools, books and health care. And of course the workers are paid a fair price for their work.

And only one company in the UK is importing and retailing these trees; Fairwind. The trees are now available to order from www.fairwindonline.com. 

Katie Melua

The British Georgia-born singer, Katie Melua, has pledged support for the fair trade Christmas trees project:

 “I am absolutely thrilled that fair trade has reached the poor cone pickers of Georgia. Fair Trees® is a wonderful project that helps improve the lives of many people in remote areas of Georgia, the country where I was born. I urge anyone who loves a real Christmas tree to buy a fair trade one this year – after all, it won’t cost any more than a non-fair trade tree”.

For more information please contact:

Teresa Owen                      Marianne Bols

Fairwind                             Bols Forstplanteskole

t.owen@fairwindonline.com   mb@bolsforst.dk

T: 020 8374 6254              T: 00 45 75760043

Fairwind is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

The first ever fair trade Christmas trees are now available to order online at ww.fairwindonline.com. We are looking for feedback on this new initiative – will people care about this issue, will they buy these trees over the internet, what can we do to get the message out there? Anything you like – give us your thoughts.

Fairwind is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Fairwind has teamed up with Danish Christmas tree grower Bols Forstplanteskole to bring the first ever fair trade real Christmas trees to the UK

“I am absolutely thrilled that fair trade has reached the poor cone pickers of Georgia. Fair Trees® is a wonderful project that helps improve the lives of many people in remote areas of Georgia, the country where I was born.”  Katie Melua

Ethical issue

About 5 million Nordmann Fir Christmas trees are sold in the UK each year. But until now, very few people in the UK have been aware of the serious ethical issues behind buying these trees at Christmas. Although they are farmed in a responsible way the seeds for Nordmann Firs are sourced from natural forests, mainly in Georgia.

Harvesting of the seeds in Georgia is carried out by hand under remarkably primitive conditions. The Georgian cone pickers climb up 30 metre high fir trees in order to reach the seeds. They work entirely without safety equipment and in 2004 two workers fell to their death during the harvest. Several accidents happen each year, but despite working in such dangerous conditions the cone pickers are usually paid such low wages that it is difficult for them to support their families.

Fair trees®

This Christmas Fairwind will be selling the first ever Fair Trees® in the UK – fair trade Nordmann Fir Christmas trees grown in Denmark. The trees are supplied by Bols Forstplanteskole, a successful Danish Christmas tree grower that achieved Danish fair trade accreditation in 2007 (see below). For the first time, consumers in the UK will be able to buy real Christmas trees with a clear conscience.

The trees are genuine Nordmann Fir trees of exceptional quality, grown using the best and ethically sourced seeds. They retain their needles exceptionally well and are no more expensive than other Nordmann Fir trees.

The following trees are available to order now for this Christmas:

Fair Trees®

100-130cm (4’) £28 plus £4 delivery

130-150cm (5’) £33 plus £4 delivery

Ethical, high-quality and extremely convenient, these trees will be delivered to the customer ready to put into a stand; no need to chop off the end of the tree as this will already be done. Simply remove the tree from the box and place it where required. For an extra £5 we can also supply a wooden stand into which the tree can be simply slotted. The wood used for the stands is sustainably sourced.

 Available to order on www.fairwindonline.com these trees will be delivered in the week beginning 7^th December.

80cm - 90 cm (3’) Potted Fair Tree®

£44 plus £4 delivery

Ethical, reusable, eco-friendly and convenient, these gorgeous little trees are pot grown and come in a pot. After Christmas they can be moved outdoors and re-used the following year, thus reducing waste and CO2 emissions. These trees are perfect for homes where there is little space. They also look great placed in front of the house or in the porch, and they are ideal for children’s bedrooms.

 Available to order on www.fairwindonline.com these trees will be delivered in the week beginning 7^th December.

130-150cm (5’) and 175 -200cm (6’) netted trees £28 and £44

 A limited number of netted Christmas trees will be available from Fairwind’s shop in Crouch End, North London. These trees will have the ends chopped off ready for placing in a stand. They will be available for collection from 7^th December. A limited number of the potted trees will also be on sale at the Fairwind shop from 7^th December.

The first 50 people to pre-order a fair trade Christmas tree will receive a handmade, fair trade silk star tree decoration worth £3.50. These stars are handmade in Cambodia by polio and landmine survivors, the perfect decoration for a fair trade Christmas tree.

Danish fair trade accreditation – The Bols Xmas Tree Fund

The Bols Xmas Tree Fund was founded in 2007, and shortly afterwards the Fair Trees® brand was certified by Fair Trade Danmark.

The Fund aims to create awareness about and improve the terrible conditions under which the Georgian cone pickers live and work. The Fund provides the cone pickers with Danish-made safety equipment and ensures that the workers are instructed on safety. In addition, the Fund works towards creating proper conditions for workers and their families through financial support for schools, books and health care. And of course the workers are paid a fair price for their work.

Katie Melua

Fairwind and the Fair Trees® project us supported by Katie Melua, the multi-platinum selling singer and songwriter, who was born in Georgia and lived there until she was 8 years old.

“I am absolutely thrilled that fair trade has reached the poor cone pickers of Georgia. Fair Trees® is a wonderful project that helps improve the lives of many people in remote areas of Georgia, the country where I was born. I urge anyone who loves a real Christmas tree to buy a fair trade one this year – after all, it won’t cost any more than a non-fair trade tree”.

For more information please contact:

Teresa Owen, Fairwind, t.owen@fairwindonline.com, T: 020 8374 6254

 Marianne Bols, Bols Forstplanteskole, mb@bolsforst.dk, T: 00 45 75760043