support fair trade

A news clip this past week regaring the poverty of Nike factory workers overseas prompted me to begin researching options. Here is a disturbing clip about the Nike workers. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9ZktmrGGMU

I can only hope that if enough people participate in sustainable options, real change can happen. I have found the following sites to be helpful:
Unity; “Socially conscience gifts with style” http://www.fairtrademarketplace.com/index.php
For a listing of fair trade shoe companies: http://www.veganpeace.com/sweatshops/categories/shoes.htm
A model Ethiopian shoe enterprise: http://faircompanies.com/news/view/ethiopias-solerebels-fair-trade-shoes-green-heritage/

I found out about fair trade because of one of my other “things.” While I was trying to be a good big sister, I wandered through the library picking up random books. I checked out A Cafecito Story by Julia Alvarez and it’s all about sustainable agriculture and her personal project in fair trade coffee. I plan to buy some and see if it’s any good. I’ve already started looking for free trade items to buy as Christmas presents for my coffee/tea drinkers and it’s not that hard. It makes me feel good to take little steps to help others. FYI: Alvarez’s site is http://www.cafealtagracia.com. Republic of Tea has a section of Fair Trade items for sale.

I suppose some research is in order.

I’m becoming more and more conscious of fair trade food and products and buy them whenever I can. I choose the coffee shops I go to and the products that I buy such as tea, coffee, sugar and other food based on the information that I can find out. The great thing about doing this is that is usually means that I’m shopping at smaller and more locally owned places which is a very nice thing to do.

My mother started me up on it cuz chocolate without fair trade on the wrapper was made by kid slaves in china.( or any where else for that matter. They aren’t paid. that would be slave wages. (which by the way EVERYTHING at Wal-mart is made by people on slave wages) These kids have nothing to live for except to make stupid chocolate for dumb people. If you eat chocolate that is not fair trade. You are paying the slaveowners to keep the buisness going.

When I see it I buy it and some items I love like my favourite cereal bar are fair trade – I had a chocolate and raisin bar for my mid-morning snack.

My tea is fair trade (so tasty) and certain items in our online shopping basket are always fair trade.

Shame Nestle are involved in fair trade chocolate now – not sure how much I trust that one now (since the sale of The Body Shop to a Nestle company) and how long until problems are exposed. Hopefully, for the sake of the farmers, I’m going to be proved wrong.

We now buy only fair trade tea/coffee, all of the coffee shops we go to support it and also get fruits and sugar. I’m hoping to get some fair trade spices as well.

Chocolate, coffee. A start.

Chocolate, coffee. A start.

I just had a very delicious fair trade chocolate bar that I purchased from the Just Us Coffee Cooperative in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. It tastes very good and helps improve the world through fair trade.