Co-op flags Fairtrade Fortnight
The Co-op is highlighting Fairtrade Fortnight, which kicks off on 25th February, by knocking 20% off all its own-label and branded Fairtrade wines. The company, which is the UK’s leading supermarket supporter of Fairtrade, has a range of 16 wines and has done much to help the UK become one of the largest Fairtrade markets in the world.
Vicky Wood, category marketing manager for wine at the Co-op, told ThirtyFifty, ‘The Co-operative sold over 270,000 cases of own-label Fairtrade 2006 wine and are set to sell over 370,000 cases of the 2007 vintage.’ This means that, year-on-year, sales of Fairtrade wine are up 35%.
Vicky added that, ‘More importantly, over £180,000 went back to our producers in 2006 as a result of the Fairtrade Labelling Organisation (FLO) premium and our additional contributions, and for 2007 this will be over £260,000.’
This is because not only do the Fairtrade producers receive a social premium from the FLO but the Co-op is also matching it, thereby doubling the money the growers receive through the sale of the wines. This is used to fund special projects in these areas. For example, the supermarket chain gets all its Argentine wines from the La Riojana co-operative in Chilecito, a remote town in the Famatina Valley. In this case the project has been able to help a community in the village of Tilimuqui where there was no water supply to the houses. The money has been used to renovate an old water supply with the addition of a well and pump, giving each household access to regular, clean water.
In another project, money generated for the Du Toitskloof co-operative, which makes the retailer’s South African Fairtrade wines, has funded three new day-care facilities for the children of the wine co-operative, a community centre and bought a minibus for the workers.
In another project, money generated for the Du Toitskloof co-operative, which makes the retailer’s South African Fairtrade wines, has funded three new day-care facilities for the children of the wine co-operative, a community centre and bought a minibus for the workers.