Call for Faster Progress on Fair Trade

Alun Williams has called for Ceredigion Council to speed up its work on becoming a Fair Trade County after Wales was last week declared the world’s first Fair Trade Nation.

“A motion to look at making Ceredigion a Fair Trade County was first agreed by the Council in October 2006 – 20 months ago. Although a Council committee has been working on it, progress has been extremely slow. It clearly hasn’t been prioritised by the Council and Ceredigion has been overtaken by many other counties in Wales.

Eleven Welsh Counties have already achieved Fair Trade status. All the others are working towards it. After all the work put in by local groups in places like Aberystwyth and Lampeter – both Fair Trade towns - we must make sure that Ceredigion doesn’t finish near the end of the list. Now that Wales has been declared the world’s first Fair Trade nation, due to all the support there is for Fair Trade around the country, I want to see Ceredigion catch up and do its bit.”

The qualify as a Fair Trade nation Wales has had to demonstrate to the Fair Trade Foundation that all its counties have achieve, or are working towards, Fair Trade status and that Fair Trade groups are established in 55% of its towns. The Fairtrade Foundation awards Fairtrade status to Nations, Towns, Counties, Schools and Churches that meet five goals developed to raise awareness and support for Fairtrade. Fair Trade supports small farmers in the developing world who produce food we cannot produce at home and who are disadvantaged by international trading conditions that benefit big business. The movement is making a significant impact in helping the developing world and is strongly backed by churches.

Mwy gwybodaeth / More information:
http://www.fairtradewales.com/