RETAILERS and companies are being urged to back Fairtrade Fortnight 2010 (22 February – 7 March) by making it easy for shoppers to choose Fairtrade goods. Fairtrade Fortnight 2010 has the theme of ‘The Big Swap’ and will encourage shoppers to swap everyday shopping basket items such as tea, coffee, chocolate, cotton Tee-shirts, bananas, cakes, sugar and a host of other products for Fairtrade ones.

Fairtrade Fortnight is the annual nationwide campaign to promote awareness of Fairtrade and encourage people to buy products which carry the FAIRTRADE Mark in order to help producers in developing countries.

During the Fortnight, the Fairtrade Foundation will tot up product swaps on a special online swap-o-meter. Its aim is to get people in Britain to make one million and one swaps over the two-week period and change the lives of at least one million and one farmers and workers around the world.

Point-of-sale material and other resources are available from the Fairtrade Foundation (www.fairtrade.org.uk) to help retailers and companies promote The Big Swap during Fairtrade Fortnight 2010.

Harriet Lamb, Executive Director of the Fairtrade Foundation, says: ‘Fairtrade Fortnight is a fantastic opportunity for retailers and companies to promote Fairtrade, improve product visibility at point-of-sale and give customers access to more Fairtrade items. Customers consistently tell us that they would buy more Fairtrade goods if they were available so we know the market exists for an ever-increasing range of Fairtrade items.

‘People also say that they cannot find the all the products they want in store so now is the time to make the most of what is on offer. And as more than 4,500 products have been licensed to carry the FAIRTRADE Mark retailers have plenty of Fairtrade products to choose from when they are looking to increase or extend their ranges.’

Carolyn Whitwell, Design Director of Fairtrade clothing company Bishopston Trading Company (www.bishopstontrading .co.uk), says: ‘Fairtrade Fortnight is a great opportunity for us to showcase our ranges and encourage people to change the way they shop. There’s a real buzz in our shops during Fairtrade Fortnight and we enjoy talking to customers and explaining the benefits of Fairtrade. I would encourage people to start swapping their ordinary cotton purchases for Fairtrade cotton in 2010.’

Research also shows that the majority of people agree with the ideals behind Fairtrade. The Big Swap is a fun way to show shoppers how easy it can be to break out of old shopping habits and start buying Fairtrade.

According to TNS, awareness figures for September 2009 show that 72% of people recognise the FAIRTRADE Mark, up from 68% in April 2009. In a different survey of 25,000 households, TNS market penetration figures show that consumers are spending more on Fairtrade products, as the average weight of household purchases grew over the past year by 5.5% from £18.19 to £19.17.

Liz Jarman, Sainsbury’s Head of Product Development and Technology, said: ‘As the UK’s biggest retailer of Fairtrade products, we have always been an active supporter of Fairtrade products and are pleased to have reached our target for converting to 100% Fairtrade on our own-brand tea, sugar, roast and ground coffee and bananas.

‘We are delighted to be working together on the Big Swap for Fairtrade Fortnight, offering our customers Fairtrade alternatives to their daily staples.’

The value of UK Fairtrade sales has grown more than tenfold since 2001, reaching nearly £700 million in 2008 and Fairtrade now helps more than 7.5 million people – farmers, workers and their families – to have more security and control over their lives.

Since launching in 2000, Fairtrade bananas now account for 1 in 4 bananas sold in the UK. Since the introduction of Fairtrade certified cotton in 2005, annual sales have risen from £200,000 to over £7.8 million although this is still a sector which has plenty of room for growth.

Sales figures for 2009 will be announced during Fairtrade Fortnight 2010 and are expected to reflect key commercial developments and show significant growth in some categories, despite the Recession.

Major commercial developments during 2009 include:
- Fairtrade certification of Cadbury Dairy Milk
- Starbucks stores in the UK and Ireland now serving 100% Fairtrade Certified coffee in all of their espresso-based beverages
- The first Fairtrade beauty products were launched by Boots, Bubble & Balm, Lush, Neal’s Yard, Essential Care and Visionary Soap
- A new sweets and confectionary company dedicated to Fairtrade, Wish4Fairtrade, was launched.

Harriet Lamb adds: ‘We are inspiring people to swap their shopping but this will only be possible with the support of retailers and companies. Together we can deliver badly needed change for producers in developing countries and so help tip the balance of trade in their favour.’