Food Co-op Honors World Fair Trade in May

— from Susannah Weaver for Orcas Food Co-op —

This May, in over 70 countries around the globe, we celebrate World Fair Trade Day and the hard work, resilience, and innovation of small-scale farmers and artisans.

In honor of World Fair Trade Day (on May 12), May 2-15, Orcas Food Co-op partners with brands committed to working with farmers to bring home deals on their fair trade products along with offering more opportunities to get involved.

You may already be aware of some of the basics of fair trade: Fair prices paid directly to farmer organizations, premiums for organic production and community development. Beyond that the fair trade movement is also supporting small-scale farmers as they tackle climate change, one of the biggest issues of our time.

From coffee to cacao, from mint fields in India to shea nut trees in Togo, small-scale farmers are combining traditional regenerative organic farming practices with new innovations. The result: the kind of food and farming systems that we need to build resilience and tackle climate change.

Plant a Tree, Grow the Future
Far in the north of Peru lies one of the most fragile ecosystems in the face of climate change. Deforestation and the accompanying loss of freshwater springs and shade cover has left the land degraded and the surrounding communities impoverished and challenged.

Norandino co-operative has developed an ambitious reforestation program to engage the community, reforest the land, and grow a sustainable, green economy. With your help, they will plant 69,000 trees that will provide shade for coffee trees, as well as additional food and income for 64 small-scale farm families. And each of those trees also has the added benefit of sequestering carbon and helping restore the soil—it’s a win for communities and for all of us who live on this planet!

Fund the Future of Farming
This is the sort of project that is urgently needed in our changing climate, yet too often it’s hard for farming communities to get funding. That’s where Grow Ahead, Fair World Project’s crowdfunding initiative—and YOU—come in. Grow Ahead works to raise money for these hard-to-fund yet essential projects in farming communities.

May 2-15, stop by your local co-op: Just $1 will buy one tree—and so many other benefits! Or go directly to growahead.org to donate.

There will also be deals on all sorts of fair trade products from May 2 – 15. Try something new or stock up on an old favorite. Know that when you do so, you’re supporting fair prices for farmers, community development all around the globe, and the kind of regenerative organic food and farming systems that are good for all of us.